Average Temperatures

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the average temperature in London has been in each month of the past 10 years.

Ian Pearson: The following table contains temperature data for London for each month of the last 10 years, collected from the Meteorological Office's London site located in Holborn, on the Clerkenwell road.
	The three columns cover the average maximum temperatures recorded on each day in the month, the average of the minimum temperatures recorded on each day in the month, and the overall mean (that is, for the 24-hour period, averaged over all days in the month).
	
		
			   Average maximum (° C)  Average minimum (° C)  Mean (° C) 
			  1996
			 January 7.63 4.06 5.77 
			 February 6.84 1.51 4.19 
			 March 8.65 3.41 6.03 
			 April 14.07 7.02 10.54 
			 May 14.36 7.24 10.80 
			 June 21.69 12.88 17.29 
			 July 22.76 14.48 18.62 
			 August 21.89 14.75 18.32 
			 September 18.24 12.06 15.15 
			 October 16.15 10.62 13.38 
			 November 10.52 4.91 7.72 
			 December 6.82 2.87 4.84 
			 
			  1997
			 January 6.01 1.62 3.81 
			 February 10.64 5.41 8.03 
			 March 13.76 6.99 10.41 
			 April 15.04 6.80 10.92 
			 May 18.57 9.74 14.16 
			 June 19.73 12.62 16.18 
			 July 23.27 15.03 19.15 
			 August 25.98 17.77 21.87 
			 September 20.58 13.11 16.84 
			 October 15.77 9.08 12.43 
			 November 12.77 8.05 10.41 
			 December 9.66 5.34 7.50 
			 
			  1998
			 January 9.37 4.88 7.12 
			 February 11.88 5.92 8.90 
			 March 12.45 6.97 9.71 
			 April 12.94 6.85 9.89 
			 May 19.68 10.76 15.22 
			 June 20.02 12.87 16.45 
			 July 21.28 13.90 17.59 
			 August 23.26 14.28 18.77 
			 September 20.20 13.51 16.85 
			 October 14.52 9.67 12.10 
			 November 10.00 5.12 7.56 
			 December 9.98 5.13 7.55 
			 
			  1999
			 January 9.93 5.27 7.60 
			 February 9.04 4.16 6.60 
			 March 12.56 6.50 9.53 
			 April 15.22 7.95 11.59 
			 May 19.40 11.41 15.40 
			 June 20.37 12.52 16.45 
			 July 24.94 15.47 20.20 
			 August 22.76 15.27 19.01 
			 September 21.69 14.77 18.23 
			 October 15.92 9.65 12.78 
			 November 11.43 7.09 9.26 
			 December 9.01 4.11 6.56 
			 
			  2000
			 January 8.93 4.47 6.70 
			 February 10.73 5.40 8.07 
			 March 12.20 6.33 9.27 
			 April 13.50 6.77 10.13 
			 May 18.27 10.37 14.32 
			 June 21.52 14.00 17.76 
			 July 21.02 13.83 17.43 
			 August 23.46 15.45 19.46 
			 September 20.47 13.85 17.16 
			 October 14.92 9.70 12.31 
			 November 11.47 6.50 9.01 
			 December 9.40 6.06 7.73 
			 
			  2001
			 January 7.69 3.36 5.53 
			 February 9.42 3.89 6.66 
			 March 9.84 4.78 7.31 
			 April 13.04 6.63 9.83 
			 May 19.09 9.99 14.54 
			 June 20.80 12.77 16.79 
			 July 24.14 15.91 20.02 
			 August 23.62 15.68 19.65 
			 September 18.03 11.95 14.99 
			 October 18.04 12.63 15.33 
			 November 11.46 6.33 8.89 
			 December 7.75 3.08 5.41 
			 
			  2002
			 January 10.13 5.19 7.66 
			 February 11.53 5.99 8.76 
			 March 12.81 6.64 9.72 
			 April 15.85 7.50 11.67 
			 May 17.68 10.33 14.01 
			 June 20.62 12.87 16.74 
			 July 22.36 14.61 18.49 
			 August 23.51 15.85 19.68 
			 September 20.05 12.68 16.36 
			 October 15.11 9.54 12.32 
			 November 12.84 8.60 10.72 
			 December 9.34 6.00 7.67 
			 
			  2003
			 January 8.26 3.96 6.11 
			 February 8.97 3.25 6.11 
			 March 13.96 5.95 9.95 
			 April 15.70 7.56 11.63 
			 May 18.55 10.62 14.58 
			 June 23.47 14.81 19.14 
			 July 23.92 15.97 19.95 
			 August 26.13 16.89 21.51 
			 September 21.71 12.62 17.17 
			 October 14.21 7.87 11.04 
			 November 12.78 8.26 10.52 
			 December 9.32 4.94 7.13 
			 
			  2004
			 January 9.15 4.53 6.84 
			 February 8.96 4.91 6.93 
			 March 11.10 5.32 8.21 
			 April 15.39 8.16 11.78 
			 May 18.27 10.88 14.58 
			 June 22.09 14.12 18.11 
			 July 23.09 14.62 18.85 
			 August 24.17 16.20 20.19 
			 September 20.94 13.56 17.25 
			 October 15.45 10.34 12.90 
			 November 11.52 7.38 9.45 
			 December 9.47 4.88 7.18 
			 
			  2005
			 January 9.85 5.31 7.58 
			 February 7.68 3.52 5.60 
			 March 11.79 5.73 8.76 
			 April 15.15 7.81 11.48 
			 May 17.71 9.96 13.84 
			 June 22.74 14.02 18.38 
			 July 22.90 14.99 18.95 
			 August 23.05 14.29 18.67 
			 September 21.40 13.99 17.69 
			 October 17.80 12.34 15.07 
			 November 10.84 5.33 8.09 
			 December 8.55 3.98 6.26 
			 
			  2006
			 January 7.80 4.27 6.03 
			 February 7.35 3.09 5.22 
			 March 9.45 3.84 6.64 
			 April 13.94 7.40 10.67 
			 May 18.40 10.95 14.68 
			 June 23.71 14.27 18.99 
			  Note:  The values for April to June 2006 are provisional until the quality control of these data is completed.

Carbon Dioxide Emissions

Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what progress is being made towards the target of annual reductions of 3 per cent. of carbon dioxide emissions.

Ian Pearson: The Government do not have a target to reduce emissions by 3 per cent. per year.
	The policies and measures set out in the 2006 UK Climate Change Programme are currently projected to reduce our carbon dioxide emissions to 14-17 per cent. below 1990 levels by 2010. This would take us close to our domestic goal to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 20 per cent. below 1990 levels by 2010 and help to put us on a path towards our long-term target to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by some 60 per cent. by about 2050, with real progress by 2020.
	My right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State, announced on 29 June the UK's proposal for the next phase of the EU's Emissions Trading Scheme. The proposal outlines the contribution business needs to make to help tackle climate change and save 8 million tonnes of carbon each year. A saving of this amount would equate to the emissions of 4&frac12; million households.

Cetaceans

Mark Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how many  (a) sharks and  (b) dolphins were killed by British fishermen in each of the last 10 years.

Ben Bradshaw: Over the last 10 years UK fisheries have landed an average of approximately 12,000 tonnes of dogfishes and sharks per year. Of these, "sharks" (pelagic and unspecified sharks) accounted for approximately 1,000 tonnes per year, although this has decreased in recent years. I do not have information on the numbers of sharks caught because the data on landings is recorded in tonnes and it is difficult to convert this into numbers of sharks due to the wide range of species and body sizes.
	Deliberate capture and killing and reckless disturbance of cetaceans is prohibited under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. Bycatch of dolphins and other marine mammals does, however, occur in some fisheries. The exact number of animals that die from bycatch every year is unknown, as it is not feasible to monitor all fishing operations.
	Bycatch has been monitored in the bass pair trawl fishery. An average of 180 dolphins per year were bycaught in the bass pair trawl fishery between 2000-01 and 2004-05 winter seasons. Estimates for each year are provided in the following table:
	
		
			   Number 
			 2000-01 189 
			 2001-02 39 
			 2002-03 114 
			 2003-04 429 
			 2004-05 145 
			 Total 916 
		
	
	Bycatch is known to occur in gill net fisheries in the Channel and Western Approaches, but there are no recent estimates of the numbers involved. The most recent estimate dates from the early 1990s when around 200 common dolphins were being bycaught in the English and Irish gillnet fishery for hake.
	The long-running DEFRA-funded Cetacean Strandings Contract, has shown a 13 per cent. reduction in strandings around the UK coast in 2005 (799 in 2004, 700 in 2005). Figures for the preceding four years (2000 to 2004) had shown a generally increasing trend from 420 in 2000 to 799 in 2004. A report analysing the findings was published on 6 July 2006 and is available on DEFRA's website.

Deparmental Finance Directors

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what the  (a) name,  (b) professional and academic qualifications and  (c) relevant experience are of the finance director of his Department.

Barry Gardiner: Defra's acting finance director is Ian Grattidge, pending a permanent appointment via an open competition, currently under way. Ian Grattidge joined Defra on 18 February 2002 and was appointed acting director on 7 November 2005.
	Ian Grattidge is a Fellow of the Institute of Certified Chartered Accountants.
	Prior to joining Defra, Ian Grattidge held finance director posts at the Food Standards Agency and the Veterinary Laboratories Agency. He has also held posts in the Finance Management Division of former MAFF and at the BBC; was Head of Finance and Business Administration at the Laboratory of the Government Chemist, DTI; financial accountant at NMI Ltd; an internal auditor for the DTI and a tax inspector for HM Customs and Excise.

Departmental Greenhouse Gas Emissions

Martin Horwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate the Government have made of greenhouse gas emissions from  (a) car,  (b) aviation,  (c) train and  (d) ship transportation by Government Departments in each year since 1997.

Ian Pearson: The estimates available for greenhouse gas emissions from transport by Government Departments currently focus on the road car fleet. The most recent estimates for carbon dioxide emissions from this car fleet was published in November 2005 as part of the "Sustainable Development in Government (SDIG): Fourth Annual Report". This covers the period from April 2004 to March 2005. Copies are available from the Sustainable Development Commission website:http://www.sd-Commission.org.uk/watchdog/4th_Annual_Report_(final)_UPDATED_30_11_05.pdf.
	All central Government ministerial and official air travel has been offset since 1 April 2006. Departmental aviation emissions are calculated on an annual basis and subsequently offset through payments to a central fund. Final calculations for the opening year of the scheme, 2006-07, will be carried out in April 2007.
	The Defra-led Civil Service Travel Group has been created to help improve travel sustainability across the civil service. Its initial focus will be to work with all Government Departments on a voluntary basis to help them develop, and improve their own management information systems (MIS) on travel activities, alongside developing sustainable travel action plans for them to progress.

Energy Crops Scheme

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans he has to re-run the current Energy Crops Scheme.

Ian Pearson: The Government have agreed in principle to support energy crops under the new Rural Development Programme, which will run from 2007 to 2013. We are currently considering how best to take this forward with regard to the responses to the Consultation on the Rural Development Programme for England. The nature of the support may be different to that provided under the current programme.
	We hope to send the new Rural Development Programme to the European Commission in the autumn for their approval.

Energy Efficiency

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what measures are in place to encourage companies to carry out regular audits of their buildings to seek opportunities for introducing energy efficiency methods.

Ian Pearson: The Carbon Trust provides a range of tools and products designed to help companies to make an assessment of the energy they use and to understand where changes could be made. This includes action plan tools, energy surveys, design advice and benchmarking tools. The Carbon Trust also offers small and medium sized companies interest free loans to help them take practical energy efficiency action. In addition, the Trust's Carbon Management programme provides a systematic approach to managing the risks and realising the opportunities that climate change presents. It looks at both the revenue and cost sides of business and involves areas outside the scope of a normal energy or operational efficiency review.

Environmental Management

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether the Government  (a) is committed to the achievement of environmental management to ISO 14001 standard and  (b) has been externally certified as in compliance with that standard; and if he will make a statement.

Ian Pearson: On 12 June the Prime Minister and the right. hon. Member for South Shields (David Miliband) (SoS, DEFRA) announced new sustainable operations targets for the Government Estate. Environmental Management Systems (EMS) are a key enabler in supporting improvements in operational performance on the estate, particularly in areas such as energy, water and waste. Therefore, the new targets included a commitment that all Government Departments should have an EMS in place, based, or modelled upon, a recognised system (such as ISO 14001, or the European regulation EMAS).
	In terms of certification some Government Departments have implemented the international standard ISO 14001 and have obtained external certification. Other Departments are working towards implementation of the standard and some Government Departments have already put in place bespoke environmental management systems so are not certified to a recognised standard.
	Departmental performance against EMS estate targets, including external certification, has been published in annual Sustainable Development in Government reports. The last report published by the Sustainable Development Commission, the independent watchdog, was in December 2005. It covered the reporting period April 2004 to March 2005 and is available at: http://www.sd-commission.org.uk/watchdog.

EU Emissions Trading Scheme

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what estimate he has made of the total economic cost to the UK of taking part in the EU Emission Trading Scheme relative to taking no action to control carbon dioxide emissions.

Ian Pearson: In the recently published Regulatory Impact Assessment (RIA) for Phase II of the EU Emissions Trading Scheme we estimate that the cost of the scheme to the UK economy could be between £80 million and £640 million per year. This cost assumes a certain level of abatement will take place within the UK and also that the UK will purchase some allowances from the market. The final cost will therefore depend on the market price of carbon.
	If Phase II of the scheme was not implemented this would lead to costs predicted to be between £400 million and £1,344 million per year. These estimates are based on the conclusions of the Social Cost of Carbon Working Paper published by the Government Economic Service, and are also set out in the RIA. This cost represents the potential physical impacts of climate change.
	These estimates do not take into account the significant benefits to the UK economy that the scheme may generate through the growing market for emissions abatement equipment, and for financial services associated with emissions trading.

Flood Defences

Douglas Carswell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what funding has been made available for sea coastal defences in  (a) Clacton-on-Sea and  (b) Holland-on-Sea in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Ian Pearson: The Environment Agency is the principal operating authority with responsibility for flood risk management in England, including for flooding from the sea. Defra funds most of the Environment Agency's flood related work and grant-aids individual capital improvement projects and related studies undertaken by local authorities.
	The following table summarises the Environment Agency's expenditure in Clacton-on-Sea and Holland-on-Sea from financial year 2001-02 to 2005-06, showing both capital and maintenance expenditure.
	
		
			  £000 
			   Clacton-on-Sea  Holland-on-Sea 
			   Capital  Maintenance  Capital  Maintenance 
			 2001-02 — 140 731 106 
			 2002-03 13.4 140 10.8 106 
			 2003-04 78.3 140 17.7 106 
			 2004-05 52 140 110 166 
			 2005-06 80.3 140 105.6 106 
		
	
	Tendring district council received support from Defra for their Coast Protection Strategy Plan Study in Clacton-on-Sea as follows:
	
		
			  £000 
			   Grant  SCA/SCE(R) 
			 2001-02 74.4 42.6 
			 2002-03 40.2 94.3 
			 2003-04 — 3.6 
			 2004-05 12.7 — 
			 2005-06 — — 
		
	
	Tendring district douncil received support from Defra for their Coast Protection Works in Holland-on-Sea and Seawall Below York Road, also in Holland-on-Sea, projects as follows:
	
		
			  £000 
			   Grant  SCA/SCE(R) 
			 2001-02 105.7 136.0 
			 2002-03 — 1.7 
			 2003-04 7.0 — 
			 2004-05 — — 
			 2005-06 78.5 149.5 
		
	
	SCA/SCE(R) represents actual spend by the council, which has been approved for long-term support through the Department for Communities and Local Government revenue funding mechanism for local authorities. This method of funding local authority flood and coastal erosion capital improvement projects has been replaced by 100 per cent. direct grant from Defra from April 2006.

Genetically Modified Organisms

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what plans he has to assess the way in which genetically modified organisms are regulated; and if he will examine the current operation of the Advisory Committee on Releases into the Environment.

Ian Pearson: The European Commission has recently undertaken reviews of the main pieces of EU legislation concerning the deliberate release of genetically modified organisms. The Government will take note of the results of these reviews.
	We are, at present, satisfied with the way that the Advisory Committee on Releases to the Environment (ACRE) operates. ACRE is included in a general review being undertaken by Defra of its non-executive bodies.

Mobile Telephones

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the impact on the environment of the regular recharging of mobile telephones.

Ian Pearson: Defra's Market Transformation Programme (MTP) estimates that in 2005 there were nearly 140 million external power supplies of the type used to charge mobile technology such as telephones and digital music players in use in the UK.
	Because the power consumed by external power supplies when charging appliances varies significantly with the type and size of appliance and the degree to which the appliance connected to it is already charged no reliable information is available on the impact on the environment of the regular recharging of mobile phones.
	However, the MTP has calculated that external power supplies use around 3.4Twh annually while they remain plugged in but not connected to an appliance or when the appliance has reached full-charge. Of this total approximately 1.6Twh is estimated to be attributed to mobile phone chargers.
	Encouragingly, all of the major suppliers of mobile phones are signatories of the European Commission's Code of Conduct for the Energy Performance of External Power Supplies which sets a voluntary commitment on manufacturers to supply chargers which meet a minimum level of performance in both standby and charge modes. Aside from a small percentage of older mobile phones (sold before the Code of Conduct was established) the large majority of mobile phones are now supplied with chargers which consume 1W or under while in standby or a no-load condition. In time this will reduce the total UK standby consumption of mobile phones by over 50 per cent.

Pollution

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs how much carbon dioxide was released into the air by British industries in each of the last five years.

Ian Pearson: The following table shows carbon dioxide emissions in megatonnes released by British industries from 2000 to 2004. Data for 2005 is not yet available. An average annual amount of CO2 emissions of 307.60804 megatonnes was released over five years.
	
		
			   Megatonne 
			 2000 301470.5666 
			 2001 313224.8 
			 2002 300358.14 
			 2003 310629.76 
			 2004 312356.92

Water Companies

Edward Davey: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs what assessment he has made of the likely  (a) environmental and  (b) economic impact on (i) South West London and (ii) London of Thames Water's failure to meet its leakage reduction target.

Ian Pearson: I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to my hon. Friend for West Ham (Lyn Brown) on 29 June 2006,  Official Report, column 560W.

Afghanistan

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many officials from his Department are based in each province in Afghanistan, broken down by job function.

Hilary Benn: DFID has 16 UK officials currently based in Afghanistan. 14 are based in Kabul, one in Badakhshan and one in Helmand. These are listed in the following table and are broken down by job function.
	One additional post in Kabul (Economist) and one in Kandahar (Development Adviser) are vacant. Two additional official positions will move from London to Kabul in the next three months (Governance Adviser and Economist). This makes a total planned complement of 20 staff in Afghanistan. The DFID Afghanistan team also has UK officials in London, and Afghan staff in Kabul, and staff from Kabul travel regularly to other provinces (notably Helmand) to support the team there.
	The Post Conflict Reconstruction Unit, for which DFID has accounting responsibility, has deployed four UK officials to Helmand at various times in advance of the arrival of other departments' staff, and has two officials based in Kabul as part of the Strategic Delivery Unit.
	DFID officials currently based in Afghanistan are as follows:
	
		
			  Job title  Location 
			 Head of DFID Afghanistan Kabul 
			 Deputy Head Kabul 
			 Economic Programme Manager Kabul 
			 Programme and Strategy Coordinator Kabul 
			 Policy, Programme and Strategy Programme Officer Kabul 
			 Livelihoods Programme Manager Kabul 
			 Livelihoods Adviser Kabul 
			 State-building Programme Manager Kabul 
			 Conflict Adviser Kabul 
			 Deputy Programme Manager Kabul 
			 Office/HR Manager Kabul 
			 Transition Manager (to be replaced as Deputy Office Manager) Kabul 
			 Secondee to the British Embassy Drugs Team Kabul 
			 ISAF Development Adviser Kabul 
			 Development Adviser Badakhshan 
			 Development Adviser Helmand

Afghanistan

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many farmers have been offered grants to grow alternative crops to poppies in Afghanistan; and how much was paid to those farmers in  (a) 2004-05 and  (b) 2005-06.

Hilary Benn: DFID has not paid any grants directly to farmers to grow alternative crops to opium poppies in Afghanistan in 2004-05 and 20050-6. However, DFID does provide support to farmers, through programme and project support. Benefits to farmers from this support include training in new farming techniques, the introduction of alternative crops and identifying potential markets for these crops, distribution of seeds and fertilizer, and support to improve animal health and husbandry.
	In recognition of the need to increase the opportunities for farmers to move way from poppy cultivation, DFID has increased its funding for alternative livelihoods from £13 million in financial year 2004-05 to £45 million in 2005-06.
	At the same time as developing agricultural opportunities, DFID is also promoting the development of non-farm alternative livelihoods by supporting national programmes of the Government of Afghanistan which are helping to increase access to credit and improve infrastructure for farmers to transport their produce to markets.

Carbon Emissions

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what recent estimate he has made of the carbon emissions of his Department; what commitment he has made to reducing such emissions; and if he will make a statement.

Gareth Thomas: Estimated carbon emissions from DFID operational activities:
	
		
			   Tonnes of carbon from UK buildings  Tonnes of carbon from air travel 
			 2004-05 1,046 1,792 
			 2005-06 1,067 1,754 
		
	
	DFID is strongly committed to the targets set out in the Framework for Sustainable Development on the Government Estate to reverse the current upward trend in carbon emissions by April 2007 and to reduce emissions by 12.5 per cent. by 2010-11, and by 30 per cent. by 2020.
	During the refurbishment of both our UK buildings, we incorporated many energy saving mechanisms and have established Environment Management Systems in both offices. We have 100 per cent. green electricity at both UK offices and we are also currently working with the Carbon Trust to evaluate various options for renewable energy such as Combined Heat and Power (CHP) units. To reduce emissions from air travel we have significantly increased our video-conferencing facilities and actively encourage staff to use them.

Child Educational Development

Si�n James: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what funding the UK gives developing countries for child educational development.

Gareth Thomas: The Government will spend approximately 8.5 billion over the next 10 years. By 2010, we will be providing 1 billion a year in support of education in developing countries. This long-term commitment will provide poor country governments with predictable funding against which they can prepare ambitious 10-year education sector plans to achieve the education goals. Our support will help in the development and implementation of 10-year plans, which will increase investment in schools, including recruiting and training more teachers, getting more pupils into and completing school and improving the quality of education.

Clean Water

David Tredinnick: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what steps he is taking to improve access to clean water and sanitation in the developing world.

Hilary Benn: Our approach is to help developing country governments to implement their own plans for provision of water and sanitation, both by direct financing and providing technical know-how. We are also taking steps to make the international system, particularly the UN, more effective, through our support to UN-Water, and to the Joint Monitoring Programme, which measures global progress towards access to safe water and basic sanitation.
	The Millennium Development Goal (MDG) target of halving the proportion of people without access to safe water by 2015 is on track to be met globally, but not in sub-Saharan Africa and parts of Asia. DFID is committed to doubling spending on water in Africa to 95 million by 2008. We are now actively involved in seven African countries (Ethiopia, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Malawi, Mozambique, Rwanda, Tanzania and Zambia), up from only two years ago; and through oar funding of other agencies' programmes, we reach many other countries. For example, the EU plans to provide 10 million people with access to water and a further five million to sanitation by 2010 through projects it has recently approved through the Water Facility.
	DFID's Water and Sanitation strategy was set out in the 2004 Water Action Plan. I reinforced DFID's commitment to doing more during my speeches on World Water Day in March 2005, and at DFID's External Water Forum in February 2006. DFID closely monitors progress in water and sanitation and publishes regular updates on the DFID website. The latest update can be accessed on DFID's website address at:
	www.dfid.gov.uk

Debt Cancellation

Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many African countries' debts have been cancelled in the last five years.

Hilary Benn: Since 2001, 14 African countries (Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Ghana, Madagascar, Mali, Mauritania, Mozambique, Niger, Rwanda, Senegal, Tanzania, and Zambia) have received debt stock cancellation under the heavily indebted poor countries (HIPC) initiative. Another African country, Uganda, received debt stock cancellation under HIPC in 2000. All 15 of these countries have had 100 per cent. of their remaining debt stock at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank cancelled this year under the new Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative (MDRI). When they completed the HIPC Initiative, all these countries also received 100 per cent. cancellation of any bilateral (government to government) debts outstanding to the UK.
	A further 10 African countries are currently receiving interim debt relief under HIPC, and will receive 100 per cent. debt stock cancellation under the MDRI and on bilateral debts from the UK when they complete the HIPC Initiative.
	Nigeria has also received considerable debt stock cancellation in the past year as part of the deal agreed with its Paris Club (government) creditors to resolve 100 per cent. of its debts. Overall, US$18 billion of debt stock was cancelled under the deal, and Nigeria bought back the remaining debt for $12.4 billion.
	Prior to 2001, the UK also cancelled the bilateral aid debts of low income African countries.

Departmental Travel Costs

Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many staff of his Department have travelled other than in economy class on flights between Heathrow and Glasgow in each of the last 12 months.

Gareth Thomas: A total of 406 DFID staff made 949 non-economy class flights during 2005. The breakdown of flights by month were as follows:
	
		
			   Number 
			 January 59 
			 February 105 
			 March 80 
			 April 84 
			 May 67 
			 June 146 
			 July 77 
			 August 74 
			 September 77 
			 October 67 
			 November 75 
			 December 38

Departmental Travel Costs

Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the most expensive flight within the UK is which his Department has booked for departmental staff in each of the last 12 months.

Gareth Thomas: The most expensive flights in 2005 were:
	
		
			
			 January 367.40 
			 February 418.60 
			 March 366.60 
			 April 422.50 
			 May 422.50 
			 June 385.70 
			 July 426.50 
			 August 363.90 
			 September 386.40 
			 October 426.50 
			 November 355.20 
			 December 355.20

Departmental Travel Costs

Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many official journeys between London and Glasgow have been made by staff of his Department in the last 12 months.

Gareth Thomas: 1,201 journeys were completed in 2005.

Infrastructure Building (Afghanistan/Iraq)

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what progress his Department has made in building economic infrastructure in  (a) Afghanistan and  (b) Iraq.

Hilary Benn: Improving economic management and aid effectiveness is one of DFID's three objectives for its 102 million (2006-07) aid programme to Afghanistan. DFID is working with the Government to help improve revenue collection and financial planning, and works particularly closely with the Ministry of Finance. We are supporting them in customs and reform, which will help them to raise money from imports and exports and wealthier Afghan business and individuals, thus reducing their dependence on foreign aid. This is going well with revenues increasing by 30-40 per cent. per annum. We have also helped them improve the national budget process, with good results. The 2006-07 budget was recently approved by Parliament and further endorsed by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), with the launch of a Poverty Reduction and Growth Programme.
	DFID also works to build state institutions and improve the livelihoods of rural people, supporting the Afghan Government's own objectives, as set out in their Interim Afghanistan National Development Strategy. Although the rebuilding of Afghanistan cannot be achieved without significant investments in infrastructure, we do not focus on this area. Given the scale of resources required, and the importance of donors working to their respective comparative advantages, we believe other donors are better placed to make these investmentsin particular the USA, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and Japan, all of whom are investing in Afghanistan's infrastructure sector. Part of DFID's livelihoods work does include support for small scale rural infrastructure through funding to National Programmes. Through the National Rural Access Programme for example, around 6,000 km of rural roads have been rehabilitated and/or constructed since 2002.
	Over 70 per cent. of our aid goes directly to the Government of Afghanistan. The UK is the largest donor to the Government's recurrent budgetcovering annual costs such as salaries for teachers and health workers. This is exactly what the Afghan Government wantsand is the best chance for building effective state institutions that will last.
	In Iraq, DFID has committed over 417 million to specific projects since March 2003, of which over 353 million has now been disbursed. This includes a 70 million contribution in 2004 to the International Reconstruction Fund Facility for Iraq (IRFFI)trust funds run by the UN and the World Bank; and 19 per cent. of EC contributions to Iraq (67 million).
	DFID has been supporting economic reform in Iraq since 2004 and has committed 13 million to support the Iraqi Ministry of Finance to lead and manage a programme of macro-economic and budget reform. Activities include help with 2007 budget preparation, policy advice on public expenditure and in particular subsidy reform, and keeping the IMF's Standby Arrangement on track. DFID also plans to provide two additional consultants to the Government of Iraq to work on structural economic reform (e.g. oil sector restructuring and financial market reforms).
	Since March 2003 DFID has spent 78 million on physical infrastructure improvements in southern Iraq, to improve delivery of power and water services essential to further economic growth. These include:
	repairs to power stations in the south which have added and secured enough power in total to supply over 50,000 homes, and improved electricity supplies to 1.5 million residents;
	work to provide 10 small generators adding a further 15MW to the national grid;
	construction of a water training centre for use by the southern Governorates
	replacement of 800 km of water mains, as well as repair of 5,047 leaks across the four southern Governorates;
	construction of almost 10 km of piped main drainage plus mains connections to 830 houses;
	supply of technical advice for a major sewage installation in Al Amarah, providing up to half the city's population with access to a piped system and replacing open sewage channels; and
	installation of new sewage treatment facilities at Mina Prison, Basra;
	We have also committed a further 18 million to improve power and water infrastructure in the south includes building a new gas pumping station; essential repairs at power stations; building three new water towers; and two further water projects which will provide drinking water for 500,000 people.

Overseas Projects

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development in what projects the UK is involved in  (a) the Palestinian Territories,  (b) Iraq and  (c) Afghanistan; and if he will make a statement.

Hilary Benn: In the Palestinian Territories, DFID support has focused on three areas: supporting the peace process, improving the delivery of humanitarian and development assistance, and helping the institutions of a future Palestinian state to be more effective, accountable and inclusive. DFID has spent 176 million on its Palestinian programme since 2001, plus our share of European Community aid. DFID projects and programmes are as follows:
	Support for Palestinian refugees through the United Nations Relief and Works Agency;
	Assistance to the Negotiations Affairs Department to support progress towards a negotiated, two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict;
	Building the capacity of the Palestinian Authority (currently suspended) and civil society organisations on governance and public administration reform;
	Improved analysis of PA institutional development;
	A fund to assist DFID to finance strategic interventions to support a peace process and economic development.
	Until the Hamas Government agrees to the conditions set out by the Quartet, UK Government aid will be channelled outside the Palestinian Authority. We expect to contribute through a new temporary international mechanism to provide support for Palestinian basic needs.
	The UK also provides funding through the Global Conflict Prevention Pool (GCPP), which is managed jointly by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), DFID and the Ministry of Defence (MOD). Current projects in the Palestinian Territories:
	Military liaison officer for the Palestinians;
	Training needs analysis for national security forces (currently suspended);
	Military advisor to the special envoy for disengagement (currently suspended);
	Close protection support for President of the Palestinian Authority;
	Appointment of a Financial Liaison Officer to the Palestinian Authority (currently suspended); and
	Water pollution management in Israel, Jordan and Palestinian Authority.
	The GCPP also funds a number of relevant projects with Israeli non-governmental organisations. These organisations are:
	Peace Now - Settlement Watch;
	Ir Amin - advocacy project on status of Jerusalem;
	Economic Co-operation Foundation - Gaza disengagement;
	Council for Peace and Security - advocacy work on Israeli separation;
	HaMoKed/BTselem - Freedom of movement for Palestinians;
	Palestinian media activities in support of the Roadmap (jointly funded with USAID); and
	Ah Hoc Liason Committee - donor co-ordination.
	In Iraq, the UK Government have pledged a total of 544 million for reconstruction from 2003 until 2006 (including contributions from DFID, the FCO and the MOD, the GCPP, and the UK's share of EC funding in Iraq). The UK has disbursed over 533 million.
	DFID's programme for 2006-07 in Iraq focuses on four key areas of economic reform; infrastructure improvements; governance and institution building; and support for civil society and political participation. This is through the projects listed, through our work as a major contributor to the United Nations and World Bank Trust Funds for Iraq, and by helping other donors to establish programmes in Iraq. DFID is currently funding the following projects:
	Iraq Infrastructure Services Project to deliver improved power and water services in southern Iraq;
	Operation Ampere providing 10 generators for southern governorates;
	Governorates capacity building programme (GCBP) supporting the southern provinces in planning and budgeting skills. In Basra, the UK-led provincial reconstruction team (PRT) is developing an integrated approach to governance, rule of law, economic development and infrastructure. The PRT draws together existing GCBP funding with US funding on governance (plus further programme funding from the US of $15 million from October 2006), US military funding and Danish funds on agriculture and irrigation;
	Support to the centre of Government. This programme is building communications, management and core civil service expertise in the Prime Minister's office, Council of Ministers' Secretariat and Government Communications Directorate;
	Supporting Economic Reform, helping the Ministry of Finance to lead and manage a programme of macro-economic and budget reform in Iraq;
	BBC World Service Trust Project, strengthening independent broadcasting in the south;
	Political Participation Fund. This project seeks to encourage broad participation in national and local elections and the constitutional debate; and
	Civil Society Fund. We provide funding to UK non-governmental organisations who forge mentoring partnerships with Iraqi civil society organisations to build their capacity.
	In 2006-07 the global conflict prevention pool is undertaking the following projects in Iraq:
	Police training and mentoring;
	Prisons mentoring and support;
	Ministry of Interior support to improve accountability and reduce scope for abuses and corruption;
	Provision of a justice adviser.
	The FCO has also allocated 100,000 for human rights support projects in Iraq.
	In Afghanistan, DFID's aid programme (102 million in 2006-7) supports three of the Afghan Government's own objectives, as set out in their Interim Afghanistan National Development Strategy: (i) building effective state institutions; (ii) improving economic management and the effectiveness of aid to Afghanistan; and (iii) improving the livelihoods of rural people. Current projects are in the following list.
	 State- building
	Afghanistan Stabilisation Programme;
	Technical Assistance to Ministry of Counter Narcotics /Ministry of Interior to strengthen Counter-Narcotics Institutions;
	Support to Provincial Stabilisation;
	Technical Assistance to the Civil Service Commission for Public Administration Reform;
	Technical Assistance to the Office of the President's Spokesman;
	Afghanistan Research and Evaluation Unit: Drivers of Change research;
	Support to British Agencies in Afghanistan Group; and
	Support to Centre of Government Institutions.
	 Economic Management/Aid Effectiveness
	Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund;
	Counter Narcotics Trust Fund;
	Technical Assistance to Ministry of Finance on Tax Administration;
	Technical Assistance for Customs and the Cabinet Secretariat;
	Technical Assistance to Ministry of Finance on Budget Formulation;
	Technical Assistance to Ministry of Commerce on Private Sector Development;
	Technical Assistance to Ministry of Mines and Industry; and
	Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency.
	 Livelihoods
	National Solidarity Programme (Government Programme);
	Micro-finance Investment Support Facility in Afghanistan (Government Programme);
	Eastern Hazarajat Alternative Livelihoods Project (UN FAO);
	Alternative Agricultural Livelihoods Programme (UN FAO);
	Badakhshan - Aga Khan Development Network AL programme;
	Research into Alternative Livelihoods Fund; and
	Agricultural Input Supply Programme
	Technical assistance to Ministry reconstruction and rural development and Ministry of Agriculture and animal husbandry on sustainable livelihoods.
	Over 70 per cent. of our aid goes directly to the Government of Afghanistan. The UK is the largest donor to the Government's recurrent budgetcovering annual costs such as salaries for teachers and health workers. This is exactly what the Afghan Government wantsand is the best chance for building effective state institutions that will last.

Palestinian Authority

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much financial aid he expects the UK will give to the Palestinian Authority in 2006-07.

Hilary Benn: Until the Hamas-led government complies with the principles laid out by the Quartet (the United Nations, the United States of America, Russia and the European Union), direct aid to the Palestinian Authority will not be possible. The principles are that the Hamas-led government should recognise Israel, renounce violence, and accept previous agreements and obligations, including the Roadmap.
	However, DFID's programme of support to the Palestinian people will continue. In April we released 15 million to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency which provides health, education and other basic services to Palestinian refugees.
	The UK also intends to make a contribution of up to 12 million to a temporary international mechanism to provide direct support to the basic needs of the Palestinian people.

School Construction (Africa)

Roger Williams: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many schools have been built in the last 12 months in African countries.

Hilary Benn: The Education for All Global Monitoring Report is the primary source of data on country progress towards the Millennium Development Goal of universal primary education. It does not include data about the building of new schools. For DFID to bilaterally collect such data across Africa would involve a disproportionate cost. We are, however, tracking data on the numbers of girls and boys in school and on progress towards meeting the Universal Primary Education and gender equality Millennium Development Goals.

A303, Stonehenge

Alistair Carmichael: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport when he expects a decision to be made on the review of the A303 Stonehenge Improvement Scheme.

Stephen Ladyman: The cross-government steering group, which has been reviewing the options for the A303 at Stonehenge, will be producing a report to Ministers in the summer. This will set out the results of the public consultation and a detailed assessment of the shortlisted options. We will need to carefully consider this report before deciding on a way forward.

Antisocial Behaviour (Trains)

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many trains were  (a) delayed and  (b) cancelled because of vandalism on the tracks in the last 12 months, broken down by region.

Derek Twigg: The information is as follows:
	 (a) The information on delays is not available in the format requested.
	 (b) The following table shows the percentage of all train cancellations, resulting from vandalism, listed by Network Rail route, from April 1 2005 to March 31 2006.
	
		
			  Network Rail (NR) route  Percentage of cancellations due to vandalism per NR route 
			 Anglia 0.88 
			 Kent 0.65 
			 London North East 0.22 
			 London North West 2.85 
			 Scotland 0.33 
			 Sussex 0.98 
			 Wessex 1.32 
			 Western 0.14

Foreign Nationals (Driving)

David Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport for how long foreign nationals may use the driving licences of their home country to drive on UK roads; and if he will make a statement.

Stephen Ladyman: The length of time that a foreign licence holder may drive on UK roads is dependent on where the licence was obtained. Full details are available on the website:
	http://www.direct.gov.uk/Motoring/DriverLicensing/DrivingInGbOnAForeignLicence/fs/en.

Green Light Warning Beacons

Martin Caton: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport if he will seek to extend the legislative provision that allows employment of a green light from a warning beacon fitted to a vehicle by a medical practitioner attending an urgent incident to cover  (a) coastguards,  (b) lifeboat crews and  (c) mountain and cave rescue teams.

Stephen Ladyman: Green lights are currently reserved for vehicles which are occupied by medical practitioners registered by the General Medical Council and which are being used for in an emergency. Users of these lights are not permitted exemptions from road traffic law: for example a doctor is not permitted to exceed a speed limit or to treat a red traffic light as a 'give way' sign.
	The use of flashing warning lights needs to be limited in order to prevent their impact being diminished.
	The Transport Select Committee has already recommended that official mountain and lowland search and rescue vehicles should be able to use blue lamps. The Department has accepted this recommendation. Any extension of the use of green lights would need to be discussed on a national basis and would require convincing justification.

Leisure Craft (Accidents)

Hugh Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how  (a) the Government and  (b) the Marine Accident Investigation Board (MAIB) records accidents involving leisure craft; whether reporting of such incidents is mandatory; what estimate the MAIB has made of the number of (i) serious and (ii) minor accidents on leisure marine craft that go unreported in a year; and whether MAIB sets out  (A) reported and  (B) estimated accidents in its published reports.

Stephen Ladyman: The Department for Transport's Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) powers are defined in the Merchant Shipping (Accident Reporting and Investigation) Regulations 2005. These Regulations place a requirement on skippers and operators of leisure craft that are being operated commercially to report accidents to the MAIB. Details of these accidents are recorded on the MAIB's Marine Incident Database System.
	There is no statutory requirement to report accidents and incidents involving privately owned leisure craft, but skippers are encouraged to do so voluntarily so that accident levels and trends may be identified, and others may learn important safety lessons via articles published in the MAIB's Safety Digest.
	The MAIB makes no estimate of the number of leisure craft accidents that are unreported in either the commercial or non-commercial sectors. In its annual report, the MAIB presents accident statistics for leisure craft derived from reported accidents recorded on its database.

Lorry Parks

Helen Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps he is taking to encourage local authorities to provide secure lorry parks with appropriate facilities for drivers.

Stephen Ladyman: Department for Transport (DfT) has published guidance on how to set up and run Freight Quality Partnerships (FQPs).
	FQPs are a means for local authorities, businesses, freight operators, environmental groups, the local community and other interested stakeholders to work together to address specific freight transport issues, including provision of secure parking and facilities for the drivers.
	DfT has brought together the road haulage trade associations, motorway service area providers, the Highways Agency and the Home Office to seek a common understanding of how best to increase and improve provision of lorry parking. The Department will then follow this up with local authorities to raise awareness of issues facing road haulage operators including access to lorry parking and driver rest areas.

Low Carbon Buses

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport pursuant to his Department's announcement of 23 September 2003, how many demonstration low carbon buses have been produced using the funding announced.

Gillian Merron: The allocated funding for demonstration low carbon buses was subject to state aid approval by the European Commission. A review of this programme was undertaken during the state aid notification process and a decision was taken not to proceed with the programme. I refer the hon. Member to the written statement Transport grant and advice programmes made by my hon. Friend, the Minister of State for Transport on 7 June 2006,  Official Report, columns 30-32WS, about that decision.

Motorcycles

Martin Salter: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what estimate he has made of the number of road accidents in each of the last five years which involved children of primary school age or below travelling as passengers on motorcycles.

Stephen Ladyman: The number of personal injury road accidents reported to the police involving at least one child casualty aged 0 to 11 travelling as a passenger on a two wheeled motor vehicle (TWMV) in each of the last five years is given in the following table.
	
		
			  Accidents involving at least one child casualty (aged 0 to 11) travelling as a TWMV passenger: 2001-05 
			   Number 
			 2001 60 
			 2002 71 
			 2003 68 
			 2004 65 
			 2005 44

Pedestrian Accidents

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many pedestrians were  (a) killed and  (b) injured by vehicles in West Lancashire in each of the last 10 years for which figures are available.

Stephen Ladyman: The number of pedestrians killed and injured in personal injury road accidents reported to the police in the local authority of West Lancashire from 1996 to 2005 are given in the table.
	
		
			  Pedestrian casualties in West Lancashire local authority, 1996 to 2005 
			   Fatal  Injured( 1)  All casualties 
			 1996 1 57 58 
			 1997 1 54 55 
			 1998 1 40 41 
			 1999 2 51 53 
			 2000 1 34 35 
			 2001 1 41 42 
			 2002 2 42 44 
			 2003 1 30 31 
			 2004 0 49 49 
			 2005 2 38 40 
			 (1)Injured includes serious and slight casualties.

Railways

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport whether it is his policy that cheap day return rail fares should apply all day.

Derek Twigg: Cheap day returns have never been valid all day, but only after the morning peak. As these tickets are unregulated, the validity of these tickets is determined by train operators.

Railways

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what funding allocations are planned under the Railways for All Small Schemes Fund.

Derek Twigg: We have received 43 separate bids covering 106 stations totalling 3.2 million. These bids are currently being assessed. Once this process is complete we will publish details of all the successful bids on our website.

Railways

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what arrangements are in place for funding projects other than those at stations from the Railways for All Small Schemes Fund.

Derek Twigg: The Access for All Small Schemes is intended to support innovative and locally focused solutions to access problems as well as schemes that demonstrate improvements to integrated accessible transport solutions. If projects other than those at stations can demonstrate that they meet the criteria for funding, including the requirement to provide match funding, they will be considered for funding in the same way as schemes for individual stations.

Railways

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport why the match funding requirement has been introduced for the Railways for All Small Scheme Fund; how the requirement will be operated; and whether the requirement applies to all projects.

Derek Twigg: The match funding requirement for Small Schemes bids is intended to ensure that the funding is spread across as many schemes as possible. It also ensures that bidders are committed to the schemes and that those schemes have reached a credible stage of development.

Railways

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport which organisations have bid for Railways for All Small Scheme Funding.

Derek Twigg: We have received bids from 16 different organisations. These bids are currently being assessed. Once decisions on which schemes are to receive funding have been finalised, details of the successful bidders will be published on the Department's website.

Railways

Sadiq Khan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps will be taken to promote bids for Railways for All Small Scheme Funding from as broad a range of organisations as possible.

Derek Twigg: We are keen to attract bids from as many sources as possible. For future bidding rounds, in addition to any publicity on the Department's website and in the press, the Department will be again be writing to a range on industry, local authority and disability organisations to advise them of the fund and the bidding process.

Railways

Martin Linton: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport what steps he is taking to ensure that his Department's Access for All funding delivers improved accessibility for disabled rail passengers at Clapham Junction station.

Derek Twigg: Clapham Junction is one of the first 47 stations to be targeted for Access for All funding in the first three years of the Railways for All project. Officials from the Department are working closely with Network Rail and other stakeholders to ensure that an effective design is developed to deliver a step free route that is compatible with any future developments planned for Clapham Junction.

Railways

Chris Grayling: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport how many train services  (a) were scheduled to run and  (b) ran in each of the last 12 months, broken down by region.

Derek Twigg: This data is not held in full in the format requested.

Advertising Campaigns

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what advertising campaigns his Department has run since July 2004; and what the  (a) date and  (b) cost was of each.

Tom Watson: I refer the hon. Member to the answer the then Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Defence (Don Touhig) gave on 28 March 2006,  Official Report, columns 899-900W, to the hon. Member for Wealden (Mr. Hendry).

Afghanistan

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether the request for additional  (a) fixed-wing aircraft,  (b) helicopters and  (c) personnel made by Lieutenant-General David Richards, Commander of NATO forces in Afghanistan is supported by the Chief of the General Staff; when Ministers will decide what proportion of additional vehicles will be supplied by the UK; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: holding answer 6 July 2006
	Force Generation for the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) is the responsibility of NATO. The UK responds to requests from NATO for additional resources as and when received, based on military advice, including from the Chiefs of Staff. The force package the UK has deployed to the South of Afghanistan in support of ISAF expansion was fully endorsed by all the Chiefs of Staff, as was the deployment of HQ ARRC, which Lieutenant-General Richards commands, to command ISAF. A statement will be made in the House should we decide to commit further forces to Afghanistan.

Afghanistan

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what discussions the Prime Minister has had with  (a) his counterparts in other NATO countries,  (b) the NATO Secretary-General and  (c) his counterparts in other non-NATO countries on force generation for deployment in Helmand Province, Afghanistan in the last three months; what the outcome of these discussions has been to date; whether they are ongoing; and if he will make a statement.

Des Browne: holding answer 6 July 2006
	My right hon. colleagues and I, including the Prime Minister, have regular discussions with our counterparts in NATO and other ISAF Troop Contributing Nations regarding the deployment of forces into Afghanistan.

Agencies Merger

David Crausby: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether the Defence Procurement Agency and the Defence Logistics Organisation are to merge; and if he will make a statement.

Adam Ingram: I refer the hon. Member to the written statement by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Defence on 3 July 2006,  Official Report, columns 27-29WS.

Armed Forces Abroad (Telecommunications)

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will take steps to negotiate with telecommunications service providers preferential rates for family members telephoning members of the UK armed forces serving abroad.

Tom Watson: The telecommunications market is one of the most competitive and dynamic sectors of the UK economy, with a comprehensive range of services to suit a wide variety of needs. There is no likelihood that Ministry of Defence intervention in this market in general would provide any additional flexibility. However, for service personnel, their families and the defence community in particular, the Defence Discount Directory is continuing to work with the major service providers to explore what special discounts they might be able to offer. Also, service literature and websites give advice to families on general communications issues, with contact options that include telephone, email, e-bluey and the British Forces Post Office system among others.

Diabetes/Depleted Uranium

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what research has he  (a) commissioned,  (b) evaluated on and  (c) received from other sources on possible links between the incidence of diabetes and exposure to depleted uranium; and if he will make a statement.

Tom Watson: The Ministry of Defence has not commissioned, evaluated or received any research on possible links between the incidence of diabetes and exposure to depleted uranium.

Diego Garcia

Norman Lamb: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether the British Government has requested a catalogue of military equipment, arms or munitions held on US ships in the UK territorial waters surrounding Diego Garcia, pursuant to its obligations under the Ottawa Treaty in the last five years.

Kim Howells: I have been asked to reply.
	The UK is not obliged under the Ottawa Convention to request such a catalogue from the United States and has not done so. The Ottawa Convention, moreover, applies only to anti-personnel landmines. The territorial sea surrounding Diego Garcia is the territorial sea of the British Indian Ocean Territory, an Overseas Territory of the United Kingdom.

Falklands War Commemoration

Harry Cohen: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will make it his policy that events sponsored by the Government to commemorate the 25(th) anniversary of the Falklands War include Argentine representatives and the families of those killed in the conflict; and if he will make a statement.

Tom Watson: The events commemorating the 25(th) anniversary of the Falklands War in 2007 will remember and honour those who fought and those who died on both sides. No decisions have yet been made on attendance.

FIFA World Cup

Greg Hands: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence which matches  (a) he and  (b) other Ministers in his Department attended at the FIFA World Cup 2006 in Germany in their Ministerial capacity; at what cost to public funds; and with what contributions from third party organisations.

Tom Watson: No Defence Minister has attended any of the FIFA World Cup 2006 matches in Germany.

FRES

Owen Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence whether the  (a) armoured personnel carriers and  (b) other armoured platforms being considered for the future rapid effects system offer significant mine and improvised explosive device protection.

Adam Ingram: The ability to achieve the required level of protection is a key factor in the assessment of future rapid effects system, candidate systems and technologies and will be taken fully into account in deciding which option to take forward.

Gurkhas

Willie Rennie: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what research his Department has undertaken into the living conditions of Gurkhas who have completed their service and are living  (a) in the UK and  (b) abroad.

Tom Watson: holding answer 3 July 2006
	No specific research has been carried out. Ex-Gurkhas living in the United Kingdom are covered by similar after-care arrangements to their colleagues in other Army regiments. Headquarters Brigade of Gurkhas works with Gurkha Regimental Associations, the Veterans Agency and organisations such as the Royal British Legion, and any issues concerning ex-Gurkhas' living conditions that are relevant to their former service, would be brought to my attention through these sources.
	Traditionally, Gurkhas retire to Nepal, where they live as Nepalese citizens in their own country and their living conditions are primarily the responsibility of their own Government. The Gurkha Welfare Trust, whose work is supported by my Department, maintains a network of welfare centres throughout Nepal providing individual and community assistance, and provides any information we require. Additionally, we assess economic conditions in Nepal every year to inform the annual review of Gurkha pension rates.
	We know that ex-Gurkhas work in a number of other countries, but it is neither practical nor appropriate for us to seek information on their living conditions there.

Gurkhas

Willie Rennie: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what estimate his Department has made of the number of Gurkhas who have completed their service who are living  (a) in the UK and  (b) abroad.

Tom Watson: holding answer 3 July 2006
	We do not monitor the movements of ex-Gurkhas after they have left the Army, therefore we can only provide information based on pension statistics. As of today, 20,426 Gurkhas are in receipt of Service pensions. Of these, all are drawing their pensions in Nepal except for 99 drawing them in the United Kingdom and 15 in other countries. The Gurkha Welfare Trust pays pensions to a further 10,542 ex-Gurkhas who are not entitled to Service pensions.

Gurkhas

Willie Rennie: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the cost was of Gurkha pension payments in each year since 1997; and what the additional cost would be of providing pensions to Gurkha soldiers on the same terms as British servicemen and women.

Tom Watson: holding answer 4 July 2006
	We pay over 26,000 Gurkha service pensions to retired soldiers and their dependants amounting last year to some 33 million. The figures for earlier years as far back as 1997 are not centrally held and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.
	The option of transferring Gurkhas to the Armed Forces Pension Scheme is being explored as part of the wider review of Gurkha Terms and Conditions of Service, which was announced on 11 January 2005,  Official Report, column 10WS, and which is due to be complete by later this year. The scope of the review is however restricted to current members of the Brigade of Gurkhas and those who retired on or after 1 July 1997.

Gurkhas

Willie Rennie: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what the cost would be of compensating all living Gurkhas, who have completed their service, for pension payments received below levels provided to British servicemen and women serving at the same time.

Tom Watson: holding answer 4 July 2006
	Gurkha soldiers are members of the Gurkha pension scheme, which reflects their unique terms and conditions of service and is not comparable to the armed forces pension scheme. This position was vindicated by a Judicial Review in 2003. Compensation would not therefore be appropriate.

Hawk Fighter Jets

Andrew George: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the  (a) effectiveness and  (b) employment relations impact of the Babcock contract for service and repair of Hawk Fighter Jets at RAF Valley in North Wales.

Adam Ingram: The effectiveness of Babcock Defence Services in relation to the multi-activity contract at RAF Valley is regularly monitored and evaluated. The Ministry of Defence maintains good relations with Babcock which has met and continues to meet the outputs specified in the contract. Employment relations within Babcock are a matter between the company and its work force. We currently have no concerns regarding their impact on the delivery of the contract.

Helicopters

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many UK helicopters are deployed in  (a) Afghanistan and  (b) Iraq; what requests have been made by commanders for further helicopter support; and if he will make a statement.

Des Browne: We regularly review force levels, in consultation with commanders and based on military advice, and amend our plans as necessary. However, it has been the general policy of successive governments not to divulge details of the military capability, including numbers of specific vehicle assets, deployed on operations, since to do so would reveal the strength and capability of UK forces operating in operational theatres, which could have bearing on our operational security, and thereby place our servicemen and women in additional unnecessary danger or potential harm. Where Ministers have, upon occasion, seen fit to release details of military capability in operational theatres, this has been in circumstances where such additional risk is judged not to apply, and greater detail can be offered in order to better inform the Parliamentary debate.

Holocaust

Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what assessment he has made of the work of his Department in assisting organisations who aim to enable veterans and survivors of  (a) war and  (b) the Holocaust to share their experiences with children and young people;
	(2)  what support his Department gives to organisations that aim to enable veterans of  (a) war and  (b) the Holocaust to share their experiences with children and young people.

Tom Watson: There are a number of programmes designed to enable veterans to share their experiences with young people. Funding has been made available to support such programmes through the Veterans Challenge Fund and through regional funding for Veterans Day events. As part of its Their Past Your Future programme linked to the commemoration of the 60(th) Anniversary of the end of the Second World War, the Big Lottery Fund has also provided money to facilitate World War II veterans sharing their war experiences with children and young people.
	We are currently discussing with the Holocaust Education Trust how we might bring together veteran liberators and holocaust survivors as part of future Veterans Day events.

Holocaust

Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has to commemorate the courage and sacrifice of British servicemen made during the second world war, with particular reference to the saving of victims of the holocaust.

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what plans he has to commemorate the role of British servicemen during the second world war in saving victims of the holocaust.

Tom Watson: We owe a debt of gratitude to all those servicemen and women who served our country during world war II. The events in 2005 to mark the 60th anniversary of the end of that war provided a national commemoration of their service and sacrifices. Notable among the achievement of the armed forces was the role they played in liberating and caring for victims of the holocaust. This milestone in the war was marked in one of the commemorative booklets which the Department published on world war II under the title The Liberation of the Death and Concentration Camps, Europe, June 1944 - May 1945. Copies are still available by request to the Veterans Helpline (08001692277)
	The launch this year of an annual Veterans Day on 27 June to celebrate the contribution made by all veterans has provided another opportunity to commemorate such important events in the history of our nation. In future years we hope to bring together veteran liberators and holocaust survivors as part of Veterans Day commemorative events.

Kandahar Airport

Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many aircraft are based at Kandahar Airport, broken down by type; and what radar capability each types possesses.

Des Browne: I refer the hon. Member to the announcements made in the House on 26 January and 25 April 2006, the details of which remain correct. Coalition aircraft are based in Kandahar, but I am withholding the current locations and specific capabilities of each asset deployed as disclosure would, or would likely to, prejudice the security of the armed forces.

Lyons Review

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what progress his Department has made in implementing the recommendations of the Lyons review; what the targets are for the next 12 months; and if he will make a statement.

Tom Watson: The Ministry of Defence is committed to relocating 3,900 posts out of the south east as a result of the Lyons review, and is on target to meet this obligation. To date, 1,870 posts have been relocated.
	The MOD does not set interim targets for the numbers of posts to be redistributed, but other relocation projects, which will allow us to meet our Lyons commitment by the deadline of 2010, are at varying stages of maturity. Where appropriate, the details of these will be announced in due course.

Ministerial Engagements

Mark Harper: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what  (a) his and  (b) each of his Ministers' official engagements were for Monday 3 July 2006.

Tom Watson: The Defence Secretary was engaged on constituency business. His engagements included surgeries at Muirkirk, Logan, Lugar, Auchinleck, Sorn and Catrine.
	The Minister for the Armed Forces spent the day visiting staff at the Defence Procurement Agency in Bristol and the Defence Logistics Organisation in Bath to brief them on changes announced in the House that day, 3 July 2006,  Official Report, column 27WS.
	The Minister for Defence Procurement had one meeting in his office in London with officials before conducting media interviews. He then travelled to Bristol to join the Minister for the armed forces before returning to London to repeat the Afghanistan statement in the House of Lords.
	I attended the House for an urgent question, for which I prepared by meeting officials in the Ministry of Defence. Following the urgent question, I held a meeting with an MOD official and a meeting with my hon. Friend the Member for Dudley, North (Mr. Austin).

Osprey Body Armour

Mark Lancaster: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what percentage of troops serving in  (a) Iraq and  (b) Afghanistan have been issued with Osprey body armour.

Adam Ingram: holding answer 15 June 2006
	All troops deploying to Iraq and Afghanistan are issued with Enhanced Combat Body Armour (ECBA) as standard. The delivery of Improved Performance Body Armour (known as 'Osprey') sets to Iraq and Afghanistan is well under way, and will be provided in addition to ECBA to all personnel who require it. Delivery to both theatres is expected to be substantially complete by late autumn. I am not prepared to comment on detailed percentages as to do so would reveal the present strength and capability of UK forces and potentially compromise operational security by placing our Servicemen and women in additional unnecessary danger or potential harm.

Peugeot Vehicles

Lindsay Hoyle: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much the Department has spent on Peugeot motor vehicles in each of the last 10 years.

Adam Ingram: The Department's non-operational vehicles are provided under the terms of two separate contracts, one for the United Kingdom and one for Germany. For the UK a contract was placed in 2001 with Lex Defence Management Ltd (LDM) now known as VT Land (White Fleet Management) Ltd, and for Germany in 1996 with Ryder plc. The vehicles are not owned by the Department and are provided by service contracts in output terms rather than by a specific vehicle model. A breakdown of individual model types for these contracts is not therefore available.
	Information prior to the award of these contracts is not held centrally and could be provided only at disproportionate cost.

PO Contracts

Danny Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence for which services  (a) his Department and  (b) its associated public bodies hold contracts with the Post Office; and what the (i) start and (ii) termination date is of each contract.

Tom Watson: British Forces Post Office (BFPO) has an arrangement with Post Office Counters Ltd for the provision of services at Forces Post Offices counters deployed overseas. This includes the sale of postage stamps, postal orders, National Savings and investment transactions, and payments of allowances etc. in deployed Forces Post Offices. BFPO receives a commission for providing this service. The agreement, which came into force on 24 May 1995, has now expired, although the service continues to be provided. A new contract is being re-negotiated with Royal Mail Group.

RAF Northolt

Gerald Howarth: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many civilian movements are authorised at RAF Northolt; how many such movements have taken place in each of the last five years; and whether he plans to change the maximum number.

Tom Watson: The following table shows the total number of civil commercial aircraft movements at RAF Northolt in the last five calendar years:
	
		
			   Number of civilian commercial aircraft movements 
			 2005 7,001 
			 2004 6,999 
			 2003 6,989 
			 2002 7,002 
			 2001 Below 7,000 
			  Notes:Specific figures for 2001 could be provided only at disproportionate cost. 
		
	
	Civil commercial aircraft movements at RAF Northolt are subject to a self-imposed limit of 7,000 per calendar year which has been in place since the 1980s.
	As expressed by my right hon. Friend the then Minister of State for the Armed Forces (Dr. Reid) when he informed the House on 30 June 1998,  Official Report, columns 272-3, any changes to the number of civilian commercial aircraft movements would be subject to full consultation with the local authority and all interested parties.

Rarden Cannon

Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence 
	(1)  what the life expectancy is of the 30 mm rarden cannon;
	(2)  what estimate he has made of the number of rounds which can be fired by the 30 mm rarden cannon before the barrel needs to be replaced;
	(3)  how many 30 mm rarden cannons are used by the  (a) Warrior,  (b) Scimitar and  (c) Sabre vehicles;
	(4)  how many of the 30 mm Rarden cannons in use by the British military will need to be replaced in the next two financial years; and at what estimated cost.

Adam Ingram: The Rarden cannon is planned to be withdrawn from service in 2025 and there is currently no requirement to replace any cannons over the next two years. There are currently 575 cannons fitted to Warrior and 329 fitted to Scimitar. Sabre was removed from service in 2004. Each Rarden cannon barrel is changed after 3,750 effective full charges have been fired.

Service Housing

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what steps he is taking to improve service housing.

Tom Watson: holding answer 6 July 2006
	A Housing Prime Contract valued at some 700 million over seven years has recently been awarded which provides for the repair and maintenance of the Ministry of Defence's housing in England and Wales. Together with the Regional Prime Contract in Scotland, the Housing Prime Contract will ensure improved maintenance of housing and provide better value for money through efficiencies. The MOD expects to spend around 25 million in the current financial year to upgrade some 1,200 properties to the highest standard of condition across the United Kingdom. Our aim is to deliver a minimum of 900 upgrades per year over the subsequent four years.
	Overseas, there is a major project in Cyprus, valued at 58 million, to construct 269 new service families accommodations (SFA) between April 2007 and March 2011. In addition, a rolling project valued at 20 million will refurbish SFA throughout Gibraltar, and a further project is set to deliver 12 new SFA in the Falkland Islands by the end of 2007. There is also a major project, funded by the Sultan of Brunei, to provide new SFA for the British Garrison in Brunei which will run in two five-year phases from mid 2006.

Thames Gateway

Mike Hancock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what departmental land in Kent has been earmarked for release to facilitate the implementation of the Thames Gateway project; what the timetable is for release; what the forecast capital receipts are; and if he will make a statement.

Tom Watson: It is Ministry of Defence (MOD) policy that the defence estate should be no larger than necessary for operational purposes. Land and buildings, for which there is no present or future requirement, are disposed of as soon as possible in line with Treasury guidelines. A major MOD rationalisation project that could potentially provide land for redevelopment in Kent involves the Royal School of Military Engineering private finance initiative (PFI). Their preferred bidder, Holdfast Training Services, has identified a number of sites for potential release between 2006 and 2012, primarily within the Thames Gateway. Options for taking the PFI forward are under consideration and MOD is liaising with other Government Departments and stakeholders. It is too early to make any decision on what land might eventually be released.
	It is not our practice to release disposal valuations in advance of completion of sale, as to do so could influence the market and would not be in the interests of the taxpayer generally.

Training Exercises

Liam Fox: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what percentage of training exercises have been cancelled in each of the last five years.

Adam Ingram: The Defence Exercise Programme has recorded the following percentage of cancelled exercises in each of the last five years:
	
		
			  Financial year  Percentage 
			 2001-02 20 
			 2002-03 43 
			 2003-04 34 
			 2004-05 20 
			 2005-06 14 
			 2006-07 (to date in financial year) 5 
		
	
	While specific reasons for cancellation are not available in many cases, and could be provided only at disproportionate cost, the programme continues to be affected by competing operational priorities.

Trident

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much the Trident nuclear weapons programme cost in each of the last five years.

Des Browne: I refer the hon. Member to the answer I gave on 3 July 2006,  Official Report, column 713W, to the hon. Member for Hornsey and Wood Green (Lynne Featherstone).

Academies

Michael Wills: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what assessment he has made of the impact of academies' educational achievement in areas of educational deprivation.

Jim Knight: We have commissioned PricewaterhouseCoopers to carry out an independent five-year evaluation of the academies programme. The third annual report is due to be published later this month. The 2005 report concluded that there is a significant difference in the learning culture in new Academies, compared to their predecessors and that 97 per cent. of staff think that the principal really believes that the academy can make a difference to the pupils' learning whatever their family background. It also highlighted:
	A generally positive endorsement of the sponsors' role, particularly in terms of establishing a vision for academies and bringing to bear additional resources and expertise.
	Strongly positive feedback, particularly amongst pupils, of the role played by academy principals in terms of transforming the learning culture and raising pupils aspirations
	Clear evidence of innovative approaches being adopted by academies to the curriculum, staffing, teaching and learning and timetabling
	Evidence of the new academies impacting positively on some aspects of pupil behaviour; and
	innovative approaches being adopted in relation to the design of new academy buildings, and broadly positive feedback from staff, pupils and parents about the overall impact of the new buildings on teaching and learning.
	In 2005, academies improved results by nearly 8 percentage points compared to 2004. This is three times the national average increase of 2.4 percentage points. The average five or more A*-C GCSE results of the 14 academies with pupils sitting GCSEs was 36.4 per cent. in 2005, compared to an average 21 per cent. in their predecessor schools in 2002.
	The then Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Schools David Bell said last year about standards in academies that in some cases, what has been achieved in a short time is nothing less than remarkable.

Adult Learners

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what research his Department has commissioned into the social profile of adult learners in West Lancashire.

Bill Rammell: The Department has not commissioned research into the social profile of adult learners specifically in West Lancashire. However, we do have some social profile information on West Lancashire adults who have been taking part in learning funded by the Learning and Skills Council (LSC). The following information is based on providers' returns to the LSC's Individual Learner Record database for the 2004/05 academic year.
	A total of 6,196 adults (aged 19+) from the West Lancashire constituency took part in LSC-funded further education courses in the 2004/05 academic year. In addition, 478 West Lancashire adults took part in work-based learning courses; and 2,079 West Lancashire adults took part in adult and community learning courses. The breakdown of these adults in terms of gender, age, ethnicity and disability is shown in the following tables.
	
		
			  Table 1. Participation by gender 
			  Percentage 
			   Women  Men 
			 Further education 65 35 
			 Work-based learning 54 46 
			 Adult and community learning 78 22 
		
	
	The proportion of women in West Lancashire who took part in work-based learning is higher than the national average proportion of women in work-based learning. The proportion of women who took part in further education is also slightly higher than the national average, whereas the proportion of women in adult and community learning is the same as the national average.
	
		
			  Table 2. Participation by age band. 
			  Percentage 
			   19-24  25-59  60 and over 
			 Further education 15 73 11 
			 Work-based learning 97 3 0 
			 Adult and community learning 4 61 35 
		
	
	The age profile of students in West Lancashire in these three types of learning is very similar to the national age profile of students in these three types of learning.
	
		
			  Table 3. Participation by ethnicity 
			  Percentage 
			   White British  Any other white background  Non-white background  Not known/not provided 
			 Further education 92 2 2 4 
			 Work-based learning 96 0 2 2 
			 Adult and community learning 94 0 1 5 
		
	
	The proportion of West Lancashire people from non-white backgrounds in all three types of learning is much lower than the national average. This reflects the low proportion of non-white people in the West Lancashire constituency.
	
		
			  Table 4. Participation by disability 
			  Percentage 
			   Learner has a disability or learning difficulty  Learner does not have a disability or learning difficulty  No information provided by the learner 
			 Further education 11 79 10 
			 Work-based learning 8 90 2 
			 Adult and community learning 8 88 4 
		
	
	The proportion of disabled adults in West Lancashire who took part in these three types of learning is close to the national average. Note that these learners reported their own disability status and were not assessed.
	Many other aspects of the social profile of adult learners are analysed on a national basis in the Department's National Adult Learning Survey. The latest version (for 2002)(1) is available from the House of Commons Library, and the Department plans to publish the 2005 version in September.
	(1) Fitzgerald R, Taylor R  LaValle 1. National Adult Learning Survey 2002, DfES Research report RR415.

British Empire

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will make a statement on the draft changes to the key stage 3 curriculum about the British Empire; and whether there are plans to extend these changes to teach more on the British Empire at  (a) key stage (i) 1 and (ii) 2 and  (b) GCSE.

Jim Knight: The key stage 3 review is still in the early stages and these are early drafts of the new curriculum which will need further work before they are agreed. A formal consultation on the new curriculum will not begin until February 2007 and the new curriculum is not due to be implemented in schools until September 2008. It would be inappropriate to comment on the detail of any draft proposals until the QCA have carried out this further work and submitted formal advice to the Department.
	There are no plans to make changes to key stage 1 and 2 or GCSE history at the moment.

Bullying

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will require schools to monitor and record incidents of homophobic bullying.

Jim Knight: We have no plans to require schools to monitor and record incidents of bullying, including incidents of a homophobic nature. Schools are, however, required to record details of any racist bullying incidents which occur.
	Many individual schools and local authorities do record incidents of bullying, and we welcome this as best practice within our anti-bullying guidance to schools, Don't Suffer in Silence. Furthermore, in line with commitments outlined in the White Paper, Higher Standards, Better Schools for Air (October 2005), we shall be issuing guidance to schools in spring 2007 on how to prevent and tackle homophobic bullying.

Child Abuse

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what national records he keeps of child abuse incidents.

Parmjit Dhanda: The Department for Education and Skills collects information annually about children's social care from all 150 local authorities with social services responsibilities in England. Information is collected and stored on the number of children who are referred to social services Departments, assessments made of whether the child is in need of any services and the number subsequently placed on the child protection register. A child is placed on the child protection register when it is decided that further action to safeguard their welfare is required as the child is at a continuing risk of harm.

Classroom Heating

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many school classrooms are unheated.

Jim Knight: We are not aware of any classrooms that are unheated. There are requirements for all classrooms to be heated to a minimum temperature of 18(o) C in the Education (School Premises) Regulations 1999 (www.legislation.hmso.gov.uk/si/si1999/99000202.htm#16) and The Education (Independent School Standards) (England) Regulations 2003.

Community Family Trusts

Andrew Selous: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills under what programme he envisages future funding for community family trusts to be provided; whether such trusts are eligible for funding from the Children, Young People and Families Grant scheme for national programmes; and what the criteria are for the scheme.

Parmjit Dhanda: Community family trusts will continue to be eligible to apply for funding under the Children, Young People and Families Grant programme. The criteria for the scheme in 2007/08 have yet to be announced, but details will shortly be placed on www.everychildmatters.gov.uk/strategv/voluntarvandcommunity/cypfgrant/.

Community Family Trusts

Andrew Selous: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills which community family trusts received funding for 2006-07; and under what grant programme such funding was made available.

Parmjit Dhanda: Time for Families received funding in 2006-07, under the Children, Young People and Families Grant Programme.

Deaf Children

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what steps his Department is taking to raise the educational attainment of deaf children in  (a) West Lancashire and  (b) Lancashire.

Parmjit Dhanda: The Special Educational Needs (SEN) Code of Practice provides advice to local authorities, and schools on their statutory duties to identify, assess and make provision for children who have special educational needs, including children who are deaf. The Code sets out a graduated approach to providing support. Many children who are deaf will have statements of SEN. All statements must be reviewed at least annually. The purpose of the review is to consider a children's progress, to ensure they are achieving desired outcomes and, if necessary, to amend their statements to reflect newly identified needs and provision.
	In addition, the development of the new relationship with schools brings a focus on how well schools meet the needs of all their pupils. All schools will carry out an annual self-evaluation and publish a single plan setting out their priorities for improvement in which they will need to show how all their pupils are achieving. This process will highlight any gaps in achievement between different groups of children, which will then be discussed with a locally appointed school improvement partner.
	The White Paper Higher Standards, Better Schools for all published in October 2005, which builds on Removing Barriers to Achievement published in February 2004, promotes a more effectively tailored education for all children with special educational needs by increasing the sharing of expertise between special and mainstream schools, by equipping the workforce with appropriate skills, knowledge, awareness and confidence and by promoting more effective measurement of, and accountability for, the progress made by pupils with SEN across a wide range of abilities. The white paper also set out our plans for personalised learning; these include providing targeted support for groups of children who are at risk of under achieving, including those with SEN. We will spend an additional 565 million by 2007-08 to support schools to tailor teaching to the needs of all their pupils.

Departmental Publications

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what draft Bills have been produced by his Department since October 2005; how many were  (a) examined and  (b) are planned to be examined by (i) a Departmental Select Committee and (ii) a Joint Committee; which draft Bills are still to be produced by his Department; when each is expected to be published; how many clauses each has; and if he will make a statement.

Parmjit Dhanda: The Department for Education and Skills has not produced any draft Bills for pre-legislative scrutiny since October 2005. Announcements on future legislation and future draft legislation which will be subject to pre-legislative scrutiny will be indicated in the Queen's Speech.

Education Maintenance Allowance

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what percentage of students receiving the education maintenance allowance have gone on to study in higher education.

Parmjit Dhanda: The national education maintenance allowance (EMA) scheme was rolled out to 16-year-olds in the 2004/05 academic year and therefore these young people will not be entering higher education (HE) until the 2006/07 academic year at the earliest. Some young people may also take three years in post-compulsory education to achieve the qualifications necessary to enter higher education, or may defer entry. As a result, no data is currently available on the progression of these students into HE.
	The Learning and Skills Council (who operate the scheme on behalf of DfES), are commissioning evaluation that will, when appropriate data becomes available, examine the impact of EMA on subsequent application to, and participation in, higher education.

Ergonomic Classroom Facilities

Paul Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what requirements his Department is placing on school planners to install ergonomic classroom facilities into schools under the Building Schools for the Future programme; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Knight: The Department does not place any specific requirement on school planners to install ergonomic classroom facilities into schools under the Building Schools for the Future programme, or its other capital programmes. This is a matter for local decision-making.
	However, good quality design is given a high priority within Building Schools for the Future. This includes designing all classrooms to meet the ergonomic needs of all staff and pupils, including those with special needs and disabilities, by providing adequate space and appropriate furniture and equipment.
	The Department has issued a number of guides on school design including one on furniture and equipment. It has also supported the development of a school furniture website which advises on ergonomic issues in schools and it ran a furniture design competition in 2002 with the Design Council to encourage innovative designs for classroom furniture. A forthcoming guide will provide advice on all aspects of designing for pupils with special needs including furniture and equipment.

Higher Education

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what assessment he has made of the future higher education needs of West Lancashire; and if he will make a statement.

Bill Rammell: The Department works mainly through the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) on matters relating to the expansion of higher education provision in England.
	HEFCE have undertaken a number of reviews, in consultation with interested bodies, of higher education provision in the north. Emanating from this has been a number of proposals for the expansion of HE provision within the Lancashire and Cumbria areas. I expect an announcement will be made later this year on these proposals, including those specific to her constituency, West Lancashire.

Ofsted Early Years

Ben Wallace: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many out of school services were registered with Ofsted Early Years in Lancashire in each year since 1997.

Beverley Hughes: This is a matter for Ofsted. HM Chief Inspector, Maurice Smith, has written to the hon. Gentleman and a copy of his reply has been placed in the Library.
	 Letter from Maurice J Smith, dated 7 July 2006:
	Your recent parliamentary question has been passed to me, as Her Majesty's Chief Inspector, for reply.
	You asked how many out of school services were registered with Ofsted Early Years in Lancashire in each year since 1997.
	In response, the table overleaf shows two sets of figures:
	1. The number of providers who registered each year who offered out of school provision.
	2. The total number of active providers who provided out of school care at the end of each year.
	Ofsted only took over responsibility in September 2001, thus the first full year of data shown is for 2002. The total ODC figure for 2002 is not included as we do not have published figures that go back to this time.
	
		
			  Information on ODC providers in Lancashire local authority 
			   Number of ODC providers registered each year to provide this type of care( 1)  Number of active ODC providers who provide this type of care at the end of each year( 2) 
			 2002 48  
			 2003 49 229 
			 2004 62 271 
			 2005 70 294 
			 (1) Data is based on a snapshot of Ofsted's Regulatory Support Application (RSA) taken on 6 April 2006. Data relates to when providers are eligible to offer out of school provision.  (2) Data is based on unrounded December Quarterly Childcare Statistics 
		
	
	A copy of this reply has been sent to Beverley Hughes and will be placed in the Library of both Houses.

Public Appointments

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many public appointments are within his patronage; what  (a) salary and  (b) other emoluments are attached to each; and what the comparable figures were in (i) 1976, (ii) 1986 and (iii) 1996.

Parmjit Dhanda: The numbers of public appointments made by the Secretary of State for Education and Skills and the remuneration attached to each of the chair and board member appointments of bodies sponsored by my Department are set out in the following table . There are a total of 21 chair and 249 board member appointments. The information is correct as at 1 April 2006 and covers those bodies that fall under the remit of the Commissioner for Public Appointments.
	The Department for Education and Skills came into existence in 2001. Comparable figures for appointments made to bodies by the Secretary of State of the Department's predecessors in 1986 and 1996 can be found in public bodies, the annual Cabinet Office publication, prepared by the agencies and public bodies team in the Cabinet Office. Copies are available in the House of Commons Library.
	
		
			  Executive NDPBs 
			  Public body  Remuneration of chair  annual unless stated otherwise ()  Number of members  Remuneration of board members (annual unless stated otherwise () 
			 Adult Learning Inspectorate 10,044 7 Unpaid 
			 British Educational Communications and Technology Agency 30,000 7 Unpaid 
			 Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service 523 per day 9 270.30 per day 
			 Construction Industry Training Board 21,420 20 Unpaid 
			 Engineering Construction Industry Training Board 16,580 26 Unpaid 
			 Higher Education Funding Council for England 43,959 13 5,000 
			 Investors in People UK Unpaid 12 Unpaid 
			 Learning and Skills Council for England 51,000 16 4,000 
			 Learning and Skills Council for England  47 Local Chairs 5,000 47 0 
			 National College for School Leadership 41,120  Unpaid 
			 Office for Fair Access 50,000 0 0 
			 Office of the Children's Commissioner 130,000 0 0 
			 Partnerships for Schools 25,000 7 5,000 
			 Qualifications and Curriculum Authority Does not draw remuneration 14 Unpaid 
			 Quality Improvement Agency 25,000  Unpaid 
			 School Food Trust 15,000 16 Unpaid 
			 Sector Skills Development Agency 42,881 13 300 per day 
			 Student Loans Company 68,000 5 5,000 
			 Training and Development Agency for Schools 44,037 13 300 per day 
			 
			  Advisory NDPBs   300 per day 
			 Independent Advisory Group on Teenage Pregnancy 15,000 9 114 per day 
			 School Teachers Review Body 350 per meeting 9 300 per day 
			 Teacher's TV 55,000 6 10,000 per day

School Pupils (Weapons)

Sarah Teather: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills how many incidents there were of pupils found on school premises in possession of  (a) a knife,  (b) a firearm,  (c) an explosive and  (d) another weapon in each of the past three years.

Jim Knight: 66 people (of all ages) were convicted of possessing a blade or offensive weapon on school premises in 2004, 43 people in 2003 and 36 in 2002. There are no records of whether or not these convictions were incurred by pupils. Possession of firearms or explosives are not school specific offences, so no records are kept of whether or not they were committed by pupils or in school.

Skills for Life

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills pursuant to the answer of 10 May 2006,  Official Report, Column 256W, on skills for life, which particular skill sets staff members regarded as requiring Skills for Life courses needed; how the requirements were identified; what grade each staff member who attended a course received at annual review  (a) before and  (b) after attending; and what course was taken.

Parmjit Dhanda: The Department's Skills for Life Strategy targets literacy and numeracy skills for adults who have few or no qualifications and these are the skills sets the Department has identified for its Skills for Life provision. The Skills for Life course is run by a local provider, tailored to the requirements of the Department.
	Learning requirements are identified by line managers in discussion with staff as part of regular development planning discussions. These discussions are a requirement of the Department's performance management arrangements and identify the development staff need to support delivery of their work objectives.
	The information requested on recent annual review grades can be obtained only at disproportionate cost. But annual reviews take into account many aspects of performance and a Skills for Life course alone would not affect the overall grade.

Staff Development

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what the total cost was of  (a) staff away days and  (b) staff team building exercises in his Department in each of the last three years.

Parmjit Dhanda: The information is not held centrally in the form requested and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
	The Department is committed to develop staff to reach their full potential and believe that staff away days and team building exercises are beneficial in helping them achieve that.

Teachers

Nick Gibb: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  if he will make a statement on the nature of the errors and inconsistencies in the provisional Teacher Assessment data published in his Department's Statistical First Release 32/2005;
	(2)  what assessment he has made of the accuracy of provisional Teacher Assessment data published in his Department's Statistical First Release 32/2005;
	(3)  how many local authorities were affected by errors and inconsistencies in the provisional Teacher Assessment data published in his Department's Statistical First Release 32/2005.

Jim Knight: The Teacher Assessment results published on a provisional basis in SFR 32/2005 were based on data provided by schools, to the National Assessment Agency's data collection contractor. When these data were made available to local authorities the Department became aware of errors. These errors may have been introduced at any point in the collection and validation process including the in original data supplied by schools. These errors are known to affect up to a third of schools spread across almost all local authorities. However in the majority of cases the error is known to be very small, and serious errors occur in less than 1 per cent. of all cases.
	Prior to provision to the DfES both the National Assessment Agency and its contractor perform quality checks and data cleansing exercises on the data. However, the nature of the errors was such that they would not be easily identifiable from inspection of the data. Only when the data were made available to local authorities were they able to identify these issues. As soon as the errors were notified to the Department, they were investigated and a warning note was added to the Department's statistical website. The National Assessment Agency has already put in place system changes for data entry in 2006 such that these errors can not happen again.

Teachers

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will make a statement on what the estimated retention levels are of  (a) newly-qualified and  (b) existing teachers; and what the average number of years served by existing teachers is.

Jim Knight: Provisional estimates show that of the 20,580 newly qualified teachers in full-time regular service in the maintained sector in England in March 2003,1,800 were no longer in full-time regular service in March 2004. This is a retention rate of 91 per cent. The equivalent retention rate for all full-time regular teachers in the maintained sector in England for the same period is 89 per cent.
	The average number of years served by full-time regular teachers in the maintained sector in England, as at March 2004, was 14.
	Newly qualified teachers are those that gained qualified teacher status in the calendar year 2002. The information is from the Database of Teacher Records and the latest information available from this source is for March 2004.

Tuition Fees

Paul Holmes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills when the independent commission into tuition fees is expected to be appointed; when the review is planned to take place; when the commission is expected to report back to Parliament; and if he will make a statement.

Bill Rammell: We have nothing to add at this stage to the commitments we gave during the passage of the 2004 Higher Education Act. Our intention is that the commission will report to Parliament by the end of 2009. The commission's terms of reference are already in the public domain.
	It is important that there is public confidence in the commission's work, and the Government will keep Parliament informed as practical arrangements are decided.

Youth Sports Trust

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what grants his Department has made to the Youth Sports Trust in each of the last five years.

Jim Knight: Over the last five years, the Department for Education and Skills has funded the Youth Sport Trust for work in connection with a range of programmes, as follows:
	
		
			   2001/02  2002/03  2003/04  2004/05  2005/06 
			 Sports Colleges 340,422 532,450 851,858 1,453,990 1,982,725 
			 School Sport Partnerships 563,700 906,115 788,232 2,670,000 3,993,200 
			 Academies 30,700 27,500 54,000 73,626 168,050 
			 Millennium Volunteers 195,000 128,000
			 Commonwealth Games Education Programme 200,000 140,000
			 Family Learning  32,400
			 Inclusion  26,000
			 Gifted and Talented 60,000 100,000 670,000 1,825,000 2,030,000 
			 International work  89,624  117,364 50,000 
			 Sporting Playgrounds 50,000 50,000  100,000 50,000 
			 Living for Sport/Changing Lives40,000 110,000 
			 National Council School Sport30,000 50,000 
			 Pedometers40,000 32,500 
			 Total 1,439,822 2,032,089 2,364,090 6,349,980 8,466,475 
		
	
	In addition, the Youth Sport Trust is part of the consortium (the Association for Physical Education, Sports Coach UK and the Youth Sport Trust) which successfully tendered, via an open competition, to manage the delivery of the national PE and School Sport Professional Development programme. The total value of this contract is 24 million.

Athletics

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much Exchequer funding has been given to athletics in the UK in the last three years.

Richard Caborn: For the financial period 2003-04 to 2005-06, Sport England and UK Sport made Exchequer payments to athletics of 7,180,000 and 6,988,447 respectively.
	Sport in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland is a devolved matter. Funding to athletics in the Home Countries may also have been provided by the relevant Home Country Sports Council.

Athletics

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how much Lottery money has been given to athletics in the last three years.

Richard Caborn: For the financial period 2003-04 to 2005-06, Sport England and UK Sport made lottery payments to athletics of 35,050,000 and 3,081,656 respectively.
	Sport in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland is a devolved matter. Funding to athletics in the Home Countries may also have been provided by the relevant Home Country Sports Council.

Commonwealth Institute

Hugo Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what correspondence she has written to  (a) Ministers,  (b) governors of the Institute and  (c) other non-departmental public bodies on the subject of the Commonwealth Institute building in the last 12 months.

David Lammy: It is a long standing convention that information relating to ministerial communications is not disclosed. My right hon. Friend the Secretary of State has written on one occasion to the chairman of the Commonwealth Institute. Additionally I have written on five occasions to the chairman of the Commonwealth Institute and once to Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment.

Correspondence

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport pursuant to the answer of 28 June 2006,  Official Report, column 404W, on correspondence, what estimate she has made of the cost of answering the question; and if she will make a statement.

David Lammy: It is not possible to separately identify the average cost of officials' time in replying to letters from hon. Members and members of the public. Such correspondence is often of a varied and complex nature. Therefore any exercise to determine the average cost in officials' time in responding to letters would incur disproportionate cost.
	It is not possible to separately identify stationery and postage costs for the Department when replying to correspondence from hon. Members and members of the public.

European Sports Review

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport if she will place in the Library a copy of the Independent European Sports Review, published in May; and where copies of the Review may be obtained.

Richard Caborn: I am placing a copy of the Independent European Sport Review in the House Libraries. The Review can be seen online at www.independentfootballreview.com.

Football

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what schemes have been funded by the Football Foundation in  (a) Lancashire and  (b) West Lancashire constituency since it was established.

Richard Caborn: In Lancashire 608 projects received Football Foundation grants from all its funding streams. These include the Capital Projects Scheme, the Goalpost Safety Scheme, the Community and Education Scheme, the Small Grants Scheme and the Junior Kit Scheme.
	In West Lancashire the Football Foundation has provided one grant from the Goalpost Safety Scheme, two Small Grants Schemes and 19 grants from the Junior Kit Scheme. The Foundation is currently considering the first application from the area for a major capital project.

Football

Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what assessment she has made of the possible loss of income stream generated by the sale of fixture lists following the European Court of Justice ruling based on the 1996 European Database Directive; and if she will meet representatives of the Football League to discuss intellectual property rights and fixture lists.

Richard Caborn: I have met with representatives of the Football Leagues on a number of occasions to discuss this issue, most recently last month.
	The Professional Football Leagues report that the European Court of Justice ruling will cost them in excess of 6 million from lost income. The Government are working with the leagues to help them identify sources of replacement funding.

Football

Joan Walley: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what discussions she has had with  (a) the football authorities and  (b) sports governing bodies on the effect of the September 2004 European Court of Justice judgment on database rights on their organisations.

Richard Caborn: I have met with representatives of the Football Leagues on a number of occasions, most recently last month. I have also discussed this matter in detail with the British Horseracing Board. The Government are working with the football authorities to help them identify sources of replacement funding.

Licensing Legislation

Daniel Kawczynski: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what plans she has to include key stakeholders and residents in her Department's licensing legislation consultation and review process.

Shaun Woodward: Stakeholders and residents are being consulted on every aspect of the licensing reforms.
	An independent Licensing Fees Review Panel was established by the Government in May last year to consider whether fees had been set at the right level for community groups, businesses and local authorities. The panelwhich is chaired by Sir Les Eltonpublished its interim findings on 5 December 2005. The panel is continuing to work closely with all stakeholders in order to gather the evidence that will inform their final report, which is due to be published in the autumn.
	Under the recent Scrutiny Council Initiative, officials from my Department worked with council officers and through them with local police and other responsible authorities, residents' groups, businesses and other stakeholders, to gather information about how the new regime is working on the ground.
	In addition, we are conducting a review of the guidance issued under section 182 of the Licensing Act 2003 (the 2003 Act). A comprehensive formal review of the guidance including a full public consultation will be completed by autumn 2006 and a revised version of the guidance will be laid before Parliament by the end of 2006.

Rail Franchises

Alison Seabeck: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what representations her Department has received from organisations in the south west region on the impact on tourism of the proposed changes to the Cross Country rail franchise.

Shaun Woodward: The Department for Culture, Media and Sport has not received any such representations. However, the Department for Transport (DfT) is conducting a consultation on the new franchise, which will commence in November 2007. One response has been received so far from the south west region which relates to tourism, from Torbay borough council. DfT welcomes further responses before the deadline of 7 August 2006.

World Cup

Greg Hands: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport which matches  (a) she and  (b) other Ministers in her Department attended at the FIFA World Cup 2006 in Germany in their ministerial capacity; at what cost to public funds; and with what contributions from third party organisations.

Richard Caborn: Both my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State and I attended a number of games during the 2006 World Cup in Germany having received personal invitations from FIFA.
	My right hon. Friend attended, in her official capacity as Secretary of State, the England  v. Sweden Group B match. In my official capacity as Minister for Sport, I attended the Germany v. Costa Rica Group A match, the England  v. Paraguay Group B match, the England  v. Trinidad and Tobago Group B match, the England  v. Ecuador second round match and the England  v. Portugal quarter final match.
	All travel and accommodation was arranged in accordance with the Ministerial Code and Travel by Ministers.
	The total cost of our visits to Germany including officials was 13,752.

Youth School Games

Dai Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what consideration she has given to including Blaenau Gwent in forward planning for the Schools Olympics.

Richard Caborn: The UK School Games (UKSG) will form an annual part of the preparations leading up to the Olympic Games in 2012, with the first event being staged in September 2006 in Glasgow.
	On 21 June 2006, the Millennium Commission invited cities across the UK to bid to host the UKSG from 2007 to 2011. The closing date for applications for cities bidding to host the 2007 UKSG is 14 August 2006. All applications will be assessed against demanding criteria to achieve the highest quality sporting occasion. It is our hope that the successful cities will represent a good regional/country spread across the UK. It is envisaged that the successful location for the 2007 Games will be announced at the UKSG in Glasgow.

Youth School Games

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport how many schools in  (a) London,  (b) Lambeth and  (c) Vauxhall constituency are involved in the UK Games to be held in September.

Richard Caborn: This information is not available in the requested format. The UK School Games 2006 is a high level competition for talented school age young people. They will be selected by the relevant National Governing Bodies through their competition framework which is based around a nation or regional structure. The selection process for some of the sports involved in the 2006 Games has not yet been completed.

Youth School Games

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport 
	(1)  what outside agencies have been contracted to run the youth school games to be staged in 2006;
	(2)  how much has been allocated to date for the youth school games to  (a) the Youth Sports Trust and  (b) other outside agencies;
	(3)  whether the contract awarded to the Youth Sports Trust for the UK school games to be staged in Glasgow for 2006 has been subject to open tendering under the provisions of the EU procurement directive for public service contracts;
	(4)  how much fast track is being paid to run the UK games in September;
	(5)  how the expenditure on the UK games in September will be monitored;
	(6)  whether the British Olympic Association was considered as the co-ordinating body for the UK games.

Richard Caborn: The organisation of the UK school games this September is a matter for the Millennium Commission. In my other capacity as chair of the commission, I will write to you and arrange for copies of my reply to be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.

Youth School Games

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what consideration was given to involving the  (a) British Paralympic Association,  (b) British Olympic Association and  (c) national governing bodies for (i) athletics, (ii) table tennis, (iii) swimming, (iv) gymnastics and (v) fencing in the running of the 2006 Youth School Games.

Richard Caborn: The Youth Sport Trust has held discussions with the British Olympic Foundation, the charitable arm of the British Olympic Association and the British Paralympic Association to integrate and embed the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games' ideals and values into the UK School Games (UKSG).
	The National Governing Bodies (Swimming, Fencing, Athletics, Table Tennis and Gymnastics) have all been involved in the arrangements for the Games from the outset. They are responsible for the competition format, team selection and technical requirements of their sport in this event, as well as assuming responsibility for the developmental work around the National Competition Framework and engaging the National School Sport Associations in that process.

Youth Sports Trust

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport what experience the Youth Sports Trust has in running competitive  (a) multi-sports events and  (b) disability sports events.

Richard Caborn: The Youth Sport Trust (YST) are managing the roll out of a new competitive sport structure for schools which includes the appointment of competition managers who will cover all School Sport Partnerships by 2010. The competitive sport structure in schools includes multi-sport events and disability sport.

Youth Sports Trust

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport 
	(1)  if she will list the contracts awarded to the Youth Sports Trust by the Department over the last three years; what the value was of each contract; and whether there was an open tendering process in each case;
	(2)  whether the Department has sought legal advice as to whether its contractual arrangements with the Youth Sports Trust fall under the EU Procurement Directive for Public Service Contracts.

Richard Caborn: There have been no contracts awarded to the Youth Sport Trust by the Department over the last three years. Therefore it has not been necessary for the Department to seek legal advice on any contractual arrangements.
	Sport England has awarded over the last three financial years (2004-07) the following funding to the Youth Sport Trust to deliver programmes within the National School Sport Strategy.
	Step into Sport5.7 million
	Multi-skill Clubs880,000

Carbon Emissions

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales what recent estimate he has made of the carbon emissions of his Department; what commitment he has made to reducing such emissions; and if he will make a statement.

Peter Hain: The Wales Office in conjunction with the Department of Constitutional Affairs is committed to reducing carbon emissions, and will be working towards the Government's targets for sustainable development announced on 12 June 2006 by the Prime Minister and the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. We are working with the Carbon Trust who are auditing our energy use and will suggest where we can improve. The car leased by the Wales Office for ministerial travel is dual fuel and has very low emissions. We have committed from 1 April 2006 to the Carbon Offset scheme for any air travel.

Questionnaires

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many  (a) questionnaires,  (b) statistical inquiries and  (c) investigations have been carried out wholly or partly at public expense on behalf of or by his Department in each year since 1997; and what the (i) nature, (ii) purpose and (iii) cost was of each.

Peter Hain: The Wales Office was established in July 1999 and since
	that time have carried out none.

Bankruptcy

Jennifer Willott: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many and what proportion of people aged between 16 and 24 years declared themselves to be bankrupt in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Fitzpatrick: Official bankruptcy statistics are not routinely analysed by age group and to provide the information requested would incur disproportionate cost.
	However, the Insolvency Service published the report Characteristics of a bankrupt in March 2006 which included an analysis of bankruptcies by broad age groups for the financial years 2001-02 to 2004-05 and is available from http://www.insolvency.gov.uk/insolvencyprofessionandlegislation/policychange/cob.pdf It should be noted that the nearest age band in this report to that requested is for those aged 18-29; the following table provides a summary based on this information.
	
		
			  Bankruptcies in England and Wales, 2001-02 to 2004-05, for those aged 18-29 
			   2001-02  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05 
			 Total bankruptcies in year 23,426 25,177 29,633 37,562 
			 Total bankruptcies with age recorded 21,530 23,279 27,816 34,852 
			 Bankrupts aged 18-29 1,681 2,496 4,116 6,520 
			 Bankrupts aged 18-29 as percentage of all bankrupts with age recorded 7.8 10.7 14.8 18.7 
			 Population of England and Wales aged 18-29 from 2001 census 7,806,310
			 18-29 as percentage of total population aged 18 and over 19.4
			 Bankrupts aged 18-29 as percentage of population aged 18-29 0.02

Biomass Energy Generation

David Davies: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what grant funding is available for  (a) micro domestic combined heat and power units which are run on biomass,  (b) on-farm power generation which uses biomass and  (c) town-size power plants using locally-produced biomass.

Malcolm Wicks: Grants for a number of microgeneration technologies producing heat and electricity are available to householders under the new Low Carbon Buildings Programme (LCBP). Stream One of the LCBP provides grant support for householders and applications are now being taken. The LCBP is managed on behalf of the Department by the Energy Savings Trust and full details are available on the LCBP website at www.lowcarbonbuildings.org.uk.
	Support for small biomass CHP schemes may also be available from The Big Lottery Fund. The fund has 2.6 million available to support the installation of heating systems and small-scale combined heat and power systems fuelled by solid biomass. End users of the systems must be either public sector or commercial organisations. Domestic installations are not eligible for support. The closing date for applications is 31 July 2006 and further details can be found on the fund's website at:
	http://www.biglotteryfund.org.uk/prog_renewable_energy.htm?regioncode=-ukcountry=UKWidestatus=theProg.
	There are presently no grants specifically for on-farm biomass power generationhowever on-farm power generation may be an eligible renewable source under the Renewables Obligation.
	There is currently no capital funding available for town-size power plants. Funding for such projects had been available under the Bioenergy Capital Grants Scheme, which is supporting the construction of projects with an installed capacity of at least 30 MW in Lockerbie and in Teesside. Town-scale biomass projects may also be eligible for the Renewables Obligation and grants under DEFRA's Energy Crop Scheme.

Energy Policy

Peter Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what estimate he has made of the cost to households in the UK of the EU not implementing its energy policy in relation to gas.

Malcolm Wicks: The lack of a liberalised gas market in Europe has had a detrimental impact on the UK gas market recently. Without a liberalised market European energy companies face gas prices linked to oil prices, and dulled incentives for investment in infrastructure, balancing supply and demand efficiently, competitive pressures to compete and ability to export in response to price signals.
	In a Global Insight report commissioned by Centrica and published in the summer 2005, it was estimated that the lack of effective liberalisation and the dominance of oil-linked long-term supply contracts in Europe would cost UK end-consumers (household and industrial) some 10 billion over following year (see www.centrica.com/index.asp?pageid= 799newsid=743). It was estimated that 4.3 billion of these costs would be borne by households.
	In addition, Ofgem analysis suggests that the cost to UK consumers of Interconnector flows not always being in line with price signals during the last winter was 1.5 billion, and would cost 3 billion if repeated during the coming winter (www.ofgem.gov.uk/temp/ofgem/cache/cmsattach/14649_Sonia_10_April_Final_notes_version.pdf?wtfrom=/ofgem/work/index.jspsection=/areasofwork/wholesalemarketmonitoring).

Mobile Phones

Michael Weir: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what guidance has been issued to the mobile telecommunications industry on the provision of information on handset specific absorption rates  (a) at all points of sale,  (b) with each telephone and  (c) via other means including the internet.

Margaret Hodge: holding answer 26 June 2006
	In 2000 the mobile operators and telecommunications industry received guidance based upon the Stewart report Mobile Phones and Health, May 2000, published by the Independent Expert Group on Mobile Phones (IEGMP).
	The Government agreed with the Stewart report's recommendations, which complies with international exposure guidelines that consumers should be able to get information about specific absorption rates (SAR) when:
	purchasing a phone at point of sale;
	online via the internet; and
	in or on the product's packaging.
	Government then agreed with the mobile operators and telecommunications industry that the provision of such information should be the responsibility of the mobile phone manufacturers.
	In September 2005, the Department of Health produced advice about SAR levels in their two leaflets on Mobile Phones and Health, which said that users might wish to take account of relative SAR values when choosing a mobile phone, while pointing out that all models sold in the UK already meet the international exposure guidelines. The leaflets are available from: http://www.dh.gov.uk/ Exposure from mobile phones and the provision of information on SAR values was also discussed in the follow up publication to the Stewart report Mobile Phones and Health 2004 (http://www.hpa.org.uk/radiation/publications/documents_of_nrpb/abstracts/absd15-5.htm para 61-68 page 28-29).
	In 1998, a European body called the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) first issued international exposure guidelines on limiting people's exposure to electromagnetic fields. The ICNIRP is an independent international scientific organisation formally recognised by the World Health Organisation.
	The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and the World Health Organisation (WHO) recommended that EU member countries that had no specific regulations on SAR levels for their mobile telecommunications industry, should voluntarily adopt the standards recommended in the ICNIRP guidelines. The UK's mobile network operators accepted this approach.
	The Mobile Manufacturers Forum, a European industry body representing most large manufacturers, publishes SAR levels for handsets on its website http://www.mmfai.org/

Privacy and Electronic Communications Directive

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps his Department takes to ensure that charities comply with the Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) Regulations 2003.

Margaret Hodge: My officials hold frequent discussions with the Information Commissioner's Office, that is responsible for the enforcement of the Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) Regulations 2003.
	The Information Commissioner's Office publish guidance on their website (http://www.ico.gov.uk/eventual.aspx?id=96) covering the Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) Regulations 2003, this includes guidance for charities. The Information Commissioner's Office respond to complaints about charities breaching the Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) Regulations 2003 in the same way that they respond to complaints about other companies.

Shops (Start-ups/Closures)

Graham Stuart: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what estimate he has made of the number of independent retail shops that have  (a) opened and  (b) closed in Beverley and Holderness in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement.

Margaret Hodge: Value added tax (VAT) registrations and de-registrations are the best official guide to the pattern of business start-ups and closures. DTI data on the number of VAT retail business registrations and de-registrations in Beverley and Holderness constituency from 1997 to 2004 are shown in the following table. For comparison, data on the stock has been provided.
	
		
			  VAT registrations and de-registrations in retail( 1)  in Beverley and Holderness, 1997-2004 
			   Registrations  De-registrations  End of year stock 
			 1997 25 40 355 
			 1998 25 25 360 
			 1999 35 35 355 
			 2000 25 30 355 
			 2001 25 40 340 
			 2002 30 35 335 
			 2003 35 35 335 
			 2004 35 35 340 
			 1 Standard Industrial Classification 52, retail trade (except of motor vehicles), repair of personal and household goods. Note:Figures are rounded to the nearest 5 for data protection reasons. Due to rounding, the stock at the beginning of the year, plus registrations during the year, minus de-registrations during the year, may not exactly match the stock at the start of the next year. Source:Small Business Service figures based on data from the ONS Inter Departmental Business Register. 
		
	
	VAT registration and de-registration data do not capture all business activity. Businesses are unlikely to be registered if their turnover falls below the compulsory VAT threshold, which has risen in each year since 1997. Similarly, businesses that de-register may not have closed. In the retail sector 63 per cent. of enterprises in the UK (200,000 out of 320,000) were registered for VAT at the start of 2004.
	The number of VAT registrations and de-registrations in Beverley and Holderness across all sectors from 1997 to 2004 is shown in the following table. Since 1997 the overall stock of businesses in Beverley and Holderness has risen by 7 per cent.
	
		
			  VAT registrations and de-registrations and start of year stock in Beverley and Holderness (all sectors), 1997-2004 
			   Registrations  De-registrations  End of year stock 
			 1997 230 230 2,845 
			 1998 215 190 2,875 
			 1999 200 195 2,875 
			 2000 245 205 2,915 
			 2001 230 220 2,930 
			 2002 265 230 2,960 
			 2003 275 205 3,025 
			 2004 260 250 3,035 
			  Note:Due to rounding, the stock at the beginning of the year, plus registrations during the year, minus de-registrations during the year, may not exactly match the stock at the start of the next year. Source: Business Start-ups and Closures: VAT Registrations and De-registrations 1994-2004, Small Business Service, available from the Library of the House and also at http://www.sbs.gov.uk/vats. 
		
	
	Business closures are part of the functioning of a dynamic economy and represent an increased willingness among the business population to take risks or the displacement of less productive and innovative firms by more productive ones. Research indicates that improvements in productivity and economic growth are more likely to come from higher levels of both business entry and business exit.
	Regional disparities in start-up and closure rates can have their root in the different economic history and different opportunities available in each region. The Government's aim is for every region to achieve success and good economic growth, which is why increasing resources have been put at the disposal of each Regional Development Agency.

Shops (Start-ups/Closures)

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what estimate he has made of the number of independent retail shops that have  (a) opened and  (b) closed in the Stroud constituency in each year since 1997; and what percentage each figure represents of the total number of independent shops in the constituency in each year.

Margaret Hodge: Value added tax (VAT) registrations and de-registrations are the best official guide to the pattern of business start-ups and closures. DTI data on the number of VAT retail business registrations and de-registrations in Stroud, and as a percentage of the stock from 1997 to 2004 are shown in the following table. For comparison, data on the stock has been provided.
	
		
			  VAT registrations, de-registrations and stock in retail( 1)  in Stroud, 1997 to 2004 
			  Stroud  1997  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004 
			 Registrations 45 35 35 25 25 35 30 35 
			 De-registrations 45 25 40 30 35 30 25 30 
			 Stock at end-year 360 370 365 360 355 360 365 370 
			 Registrations/stock (percentage) 13 10 10 7 8 9 8 10 
			 De-registrations/stock (percentage) 12 7 11 8 10 8 7 8 
			 (1 )Standard Industrial Classification 52, retail trade (except of motor vehicles), repair of personal and household goods. Note:Figures are rounded to the nearest 5 for data protection reasons. Source: Small Business Service figures based on data from the ONS Inter Departmental Business Register. 
		
	
	The number of VAT registrations and de-registrations in Stroud across all sectors from 1997 to 2004 is shown in the following table below. Since the end of 1997 the overall stock of businesses in Stroud has risen by 10 per cent.
	
		
			  VAT registrations, de-registrations and stock in Stroud (all sectors), 1997 to 2004 
			  Stroud-all businesses  1997  1998  1999  2000  2001  2002  2003  2004 
			 Registrations 405 370 395 320 335 385 385 335 
			 De-registrations 285 270 310 300 285 300 325 345 
			 Stock at end-year 3,845 3,945 4,030 4,050 4,105 4,190 4,250 4,245 
			  Source:Business Start-ups and Closures: VAT Registrations and De-registrations 1994-2004, Small Business Service, available at http://www.sbs.gov.uk/vats. 
		
	
	VAT registration and de-registration data do not capture all business activity. Businesses are unlikely to be registered if their turnover falls below the compulsory VAT threshold, which has risen in each year since 1997. Similarly, businesses that de-register may not have closed. In the retail sector 63 per cent. of enterprises in the UK (200,000 out of 320,000) were registered for VAT at the start of 2004.

Waste to Energy Incinerator

Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what waste conversion processes will be used for the energy from the waste power station to be built in Belvedere, South East London.

Malcolm Wicks: It will be a reciprocating grate incinerator design.

Cancer

Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland how many people have been diagnosed with cancer in Northern Ireland in the last three years; what estimate he has made of how many of them have experienced a consequent loss of income; what the estimated average loss of income experienced by cancer patients was in the same period; what financial support is available to cancer patients; and what steps his Department has taken to inform cancer patients of the support available to them.

Paul Goggins: The following table details the incidence of all cancers (ICD-10 COO-D48) in Northern Ireland for 2001-03, the most recent three year period for which data is available.
	
		
			   All cancers  All cancers (excluding non-melanoma skin cancer( 1) ) 
			 2001 8,667 6,510 
			 2002 9,114 6,737 
			 2003 9,219 6,805 
			 Total 27,000 20,052 
			 (1) Non-melanoma skin cancers which have an excellent prognosis and are rarely fatal, are frequently excluded when quoting incidence statistics 
		
	
	This information has been provided by the Northern Ireland Cancer Registry.
	The Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety has made no estimate of the number of cancer patients experiencing a loss of income following their diagnosis or the average loss of income. Many people find that a diagnosis of cancer affects them financially and, depending on their individual circumstances, they may be entitled to financial assistance in the form of state benefits. Current practice in the HPSS is for nursing staff to discuss these issues with cancer patients and, where appropriate, to refer them to social work staff who will provide advice on social security benefits and sources of information.
	The Social Security Agency's Disability and Carer's Service contact centre assists with applications for disability living allowance (DLA), attendance allowance (AA) and carer's allowance. People affected by cancer can also avail of the special rules scheme within DLA and AA which enables terminally ill patients to have their applications fast-tracked. An award of either benefit under special rules will mean the patient will receive the highest rate payable for help with personal care.
	The Social Security Agency has worked, in conjunction with Macmillan Cancer Support, to identify and address the barriers facing cancer patients when they need to access benefits. This work has resulted in enhanced cancer awareness training for Agency staff; an information booklet for patients and carers Help with the Cost of Cancer was launched in March 2005; and an outreach service of Specialist Benefit Advisers for those with cancer has been piloted.

Domestic Rates

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland whether the introduction of discrete capital values in relation to domestic rates will be revenue neutral.

David Hanson: The revaluation of domestic properties in Northern Ireland in the form of discrete capital values is not in itself about increasing revenues, rather it is about redistributing the rating burden among households in a fairer way. Domestic rate increases usually apply every year in line with Budget plans, however, in the year of revaluation, 2007-08, the Government has set a 6 per cent. increase for the regional rate, which is significantly below the recent trend increases. District rate increases are a matter for the individual district councils.

EU Membership

Peter Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what assessment he has made of the effects on Northern Ireland of UK membership of the EU since 1997.

David Hanson: The EU has had a positive benefit for Northern Ireland since 1997. I have placed in the Library an overview of the main effects of membership of the European Union across the wide range of Northern Ireland's main sectoral policy areas. However, it is apparent that the social, economic and environmental fabric of the region has clearly benefited from EU legislation, EU funds and the Internal Market.
	For example, NI exports to EU countries accounted for 54.2 per cent. of all manufacturing exports in 2004-05. Over the period 1997-98 to 2004-05, manufacturing exports to the European Union as a proportion of total manufacturing sales increased from 17 per cent. to 18.3 per cent.
	From 1997-98 to 2003-04, NI manufacturing companies' export sales in constant prices to the European Union were estimated to have increased by 32 per cent. from 1.7 billion to 2.3 billion. In 2004-05, following the accession of 10 candidate countries, export sales to the European Union rose to 2.4 billion. NI exports to the new member countries were estimated to be worth 54.3 million in 2004-05.
	In addition, approximately 1,821 million in Structural Funds between 1997 and 2006 has co-financed large-scale infrastructure projects such as the North-West gas pipeline, significant investments in roads and rail services, support for business creation and development, training and education measures, promotion of tourism and cultural heritage, urban and rural development, information technology infrastructure, as well as support for the agriculture and fisheries sectors.
	While the provision of 775 million up to 2006 under the PEACE programme has enabled many thousands of economic and community based social inclusion projects to directly address the legacy of the conflict and to take the opportunities arising from peace.

Afghanistan

Jeremy Browne: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Carmarthen East and Dinefwr (Adam Price), of 30 March 2006,  Official Report, column 1127W, on Afghanistan, what factors the UK Government took into account in deciding that legal cultivation of opium for legitimate medicinal export was not viable.

Kim Howells: The UK supports and agrees with the Government of Afghanistan's position that licensing opium cultivation in Afghanistan for medical export is not a realistic solution to the problems of the opium economy in Afghanistan. Legalisation risks a high level of diversion of licit opium into illegal channels and, by sending out a mixed message to farmers, threatens to undermine the effectiveness of the Government of Afghanistan's counter narcotics campaign. There are no central government and law enforcement mechanisms in place to set up and administer such a proposal and the trafficker would be free to continue to exploit the illicit market.
	There has also been no systematic market testing throughout the world to calculate demand for additional morphine based medicines and no evidence to show that Afghan opium would be price competitive in a global market place.
	The UK is supporting the Government of Afghanistan to tackle the drugs problem through a balanced and comprehensive strategy involving strengthening the rule of law and providing alternative livelihoods for poppy farmers.

Burma

Michael Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what discussions have taken place between her Department and Rolls Royce on its contracts with companies owned and controlled by the Government of Burma.

Margaret Beckett: We have recently discussed this with Rolls Royce. We have no reason to believe that these contracts breach the EU Common Position on Burma.

Burma

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what recent representations she has made to the Governments of  (a) China and  (b) Russia on the discussion of Burma at the UN Security Council; and what the outcome was of those discussions.

Margaret Beckett: The Chinese and Russian Governments currently do not support a discussion and resolution on Burma at the UN Security Council. We shall continue to encourage all Security Council members to support action to persuade the Burmese regime to promote political, economic and social development.
	My right hon. Friend, the Minister of State for Trade, Investment and Foreign Affairs, Ian McCartney, raised the situation in Burma with the Chinese Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs on 20 June and asked that China support a Security Council debate and resolution on Burma and encourage the Burmese Government to meet its human rights responsibilities. He also raised Burma with the Chinese ambassador on 21 June. Additionally, in his meeting of 13 June with the Chairman of the UK Friendship Group of the China National People's Congress, my right hon. Friend encouraged Chinese engagement to help resolve international issues. I have not made representations to the Governments of China and Russia regarding Burma.
	There have also been discussions at official level with the Chinese and Russian Governments.

Chad

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if she will make a statement on the recent actions of Janjaweed militias in Chad; and what representations she has made to the Government of Chad protecting refugees.

Ian McCartney: holding answer 6 July 2006
	We are aware that Chadian rebels and Darfur militia continue to mount cross-border attacks into Eastern Chad from Darfur, which has led to the displacement of 50,000 Chadians. We are also aware of reports of Darfur rebels continuing to be supported by Chad. We are pressing the Government of Sudan to neutralise and disarm the Janjaweed and expel foreign fighters from Darfur as soon as possible, as required under the Darfur Peace Agreement. We are also pressing both Governments to fulfil their obligations under the Tripoli Agreement.
	While in Chad leading a UN Security Council delegation in early June, our Permanent Representative to the United Nations in New York ,raised the refugee camps with President Deby and encouraged him to ensure their full protection.

Drugs

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations the Government have made to the UN Office on Drugs and Crime regarding drug production and trafficking in  (a) Pakistan and  (b) Iran; and what assessment she has made of the effects of the level of production on the National Drugs Control Strategy in Afghanistan.

Ian McCartney: Pakistan and Iran are major drug trafficking transit countries to Europe. Production in these countries is much less significant than in Afghanistan. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) World Drugs Report of 2006 quotes 2,400 hectares of opium cultivated in Pakistan compared to 104,000 in Afghanistan in 2005. Iran cultivation figures do not feature. Regional co-operation is, however, an important element of the Government of Afghanistan's National Drug Control Strategy and efforts are being made to improve information sharing and develop closer working relationships with the neighbours with particular respect to border control, law enforcement and judicial co-operation. This is vital in order to crack down on drug trafficking and ensure that cultivation does not move across Afghanistan's borders into neighbouring countries. In 2005 the UK funded 1.55 million worth of regional projects, of which 618,000 was contributed to the UNODC Iran integrated border management project on the Iran/Afghan border. In 2006 we are funding 1 million of regional projects of which 400,000 is allocated to UNODC regional precursor control projects.
	The UK has regular dialogue with the UNODC on drug trafficking in Pakistan and Iran. This is undertaken both on a multilateral and bilateral level. On the multilateral level, the UK is a strong supporter of the UNODC-managed Paris Pact process, a mechanism to co-ordinate action by all countries affected by the Afghan opiate trade, and plays a high profile role in these meetings. This provides an opportunity to work with priority transit countries to combat the trafficking of heroin from Afghanistan to Europe. At the Islamabad and Tehran Paris Pact meetings, March and September 2005 respectively, the UK pressed both UNODC and the international donor community to support our regional counter narcotics priorities. These are to develop operational cross border liaison, regional precursor control, and law enforcement training and equipment for Pakistan, Iran and Central Asian Republics bordering Afghanistan.
	On the bilateral level, UNODC recognise that UK funding in support of UNODC programmes in Iran and Pakistan has been very helpful in allowing us jointly to address a range of counter narcotics issues. Our Missions in Tehran and Islamabad enjoy good relations and regular dialogue with the local UNODC offices. The UK has also played an active role in the development of a UNODC regional strategy for the countries along Afghan drug trafficking routes.

Drugs

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what estimate  (a) she and  (b) the UN Office on Drugs and Crime has made of the size of the Afghan poppy crop in 2006.

Kim Howells: It is too early to assess overall levels of cultivation in 2006, but a significant increase seems likely following last year's 21 per cent. fall. This is worrying and due in part to a substantial increase in planting in the more lawless south, including Helmand Province. We will know this year's cultivation figures when the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime publishes their annual opium poppy survey in the autumn. There are some signs, however, that last year's reductions are likely to be sustained in areas where access to governance, security and development has improved. Sustainable drug elimination strategies take time, particularly when the challenges are as severe as they are in Afghanistan. The UK believes that the approach set out in the Government of Afghanistan's newly updated National Drug Control Strategy represents the best means of tackling the problem.

Human Cloning

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs why the United Kingdom voted against the declaration on human cloning at the United Nations General Assembly; which countries  (a) voted in favour,  (b) voted against and  (c) abstained on the resolution; if she will place in the Library copies of the United Kingdom delegate's voting instructions on this resolution; what discussions she had with the United States delegation at the United Nations about this resolution; whom she consulted before opposing this resolution; what representations she received from (i) individuals and (ii) organisations in support of the resolution; and if she will make a statement.

Ian McCartney: The United Nations Declaration on Human Cloning is non-binding and has no legal status, but the UK voted against it because it calls on states to prohibit all forms of human cloning. This is totally unacceptable to the Government, which strongly supports stem cell research, including embryonic stem cell research involving the use of cloning technology. The Government's position on the declaration was broadly supported in the House during an adjournment debate on stem cell research on 7 March 2005,  Official Report, columns 1357-70, the evening before the adoption of the declaration.
	The declaration was adopted by a recorded vote of 84 in favour to 34 against, with 37 abstentions, as follows:
	 In favour:
	Afghanistan, Albania, Andorra, Australia, Austria, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Belize, Benin, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brunei Darussalam, Burundi, Chile, Comoros, Costa Rica, Cote d'lvoire, Croatia, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Georgia, Germany, Grenada, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Hungary, Iraq, Ireland, Italy, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kuwait, Lesotho, Liberia, Liechtenstein, Madagascar, Malta, Marshall Islands, Mauritius, Mexico, Federated States of Micronesia, Monaco, Morocco, Nicaragua, Palau, Panama, Paraguay, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Rwanda, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, San Marino, Sao Tome and Principe, Saudi Arabia, Sierra Leone, Slovakia, Slovenia, Solomon Islands, Sudan, Suriname, Switzerland, Tajikistan, The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Timor-Leste, Trinidad and Tobago, Uganda, United Arab Emirates, United Republic of Tanzania, United States, Uzbekistan, Zambia.
	 Against:
	Belarus, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Canada, China, Cuba, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Gabon, Iceland, India, Jamaica, Japan, Lao People's Democratic Republic, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Republic of Korea, Singapore, Spain, Sweden, Thailand, Tonga, United Kingdom.
	 Abstain:
	Algeria, Angola, Argentina, Azerbaijan, Bahamas, Barbados, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Colombia, Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Malaysia, Maldives, Mongolia, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, Oman, Pakistan, Republic of Moldova, Romania, Serbia and Montenegro, Somalia, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey, Ukraine, Uruguay, Yemen, Zimbabwe.
	The UK delegation voted against the declaration in accordance with instructions from the Government, which covered a range of options for possible votes on different draft resolutions or motions. Discussions took place with various UN Member States, including the US. We consulted a range of Departments with an interest in the issue, including the Department of Health. We received representations in support of and against the declaration from several interested non-governmental organisations and individuals.

India

Rob Marris: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if she will make representations to the Indian Government calling for Dalit Christians to be enumerated among the scheduled castes; and if she will make a statement.

Kim Howells: Issues relating to scheduled castes are, of course, a matter for the Indian Government to take forward. However, our high commission in New Delhi has previously raised this issue with the appropriate Indian authorities in response to legitimate UK public and parliamentary interest.
	We are aware from media reports that a petition was filed in February 2005 by the Centre for Public Interest with the Indian Supreme Court to argue that the provision to exclude Dalits who convert to Christianity and Islam from the scheduled castes is unconstitutional. This case is now due to be heard during July. We are awaiting the court's decision before deciding the nature of any further representations. Our high commission in New Delhi is continuing to monitor the situation closely.

India

Jeffrey M Donaldson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations she has made to the Indian Government concerning the anti-conversion legislation enacted in Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Chattisgurh, Gujarat and Rajasthan states; and if she will make a statement.

Kim Howells: Issues relating to anti-conversion legislation are, of course, internal matters for the Indian authorities to take forward. However, officials from our high commission in New Delhi have previously raised this with the appropriate Indian authorities in response to legitimate UK public and parliamentary interest, with specific reference to the State of Rajasthan. This was raised when they called on the Chair of the National Commission for Minorities in April and the Ministry of Minorities Affairs in June.
	Although the Rajasthan legislative assembly approved the Freedom of Religion Bill in April, we understand that the State Governor refused to sign the Bill when it was presented to her on 19 May and when it was re-sent to her on 13 June.
	To date, nobody has raised with us specific cases of abuse, where anti-conversion legislation already in place has been used to prevent someone from willingly changing their religion. However, we and EU partners will continue to follow closely developments in states where this legislation already exists.

Israel

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment she has made of the implications under the Geneva Conventions of the targeting by Israel of civilian facilities and infrastructure in Gaza during the military incursions commenced by Israel on 27 June 2006; and what representations she has made to the government of Israel on the subject.

Kim Howells: We are very concerned at the increased tension between Israel and the Palestinians. We are opposed to the targeting of civilian facilities and call upon Israel to respect international law and, in particular, the requirement of proportionality and the duty to take all feasible precautions to avoid civilian casualties. We continue to urge both parties to act with restraint and end the current cycle of violence, which only make the prospect of a negotiated, peaceful resolution more distant.
	My right hon. Friend the Foreign Secretary discussed the current situation with Israeli Foreign Minister Livni and Palestinian President Abbas on 6 July. On 29 June, the Defence Attach in Tel Aviv raised our concerns about the loss of electricity and water supplies with the Israel Defence Force.

Krakow Proliferation Security Initiative

Keith Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what the British objectives were for the High Level Political Meeting of the Krakow Proliferation Security Initiative; and if she will make a statement.

Ian McCartney: The UK had three main objectives for the High Level Political Meeting of the Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI), all of which were met. First, we strengthened further the initiative through endorsement of the PSI Statement of Interdiction Principles by more countries. We were pleased to welcome around a dozen states to their first PSI meeting, following a global lobbying campaign by the UK and other PSI partners. Second, we shared information, best practice and lessons learned from previous PSI activities. This was achieved through a series of presentations and panel discussions on topics such as exercise planning, legal considerations and industry outreach. Third, we secured agreement on the strategic direction of the initiative, in particular emphasising the importance of ensuring all PSI participating states can achieve the full benefits of involvement in the initiative.

Nepal

Geoffrey Clifton-Brown: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what action the Government are willing to take to support the ceasefire between Maoist rebels and the Government in Nepal.

Kim Howells: A permanent and verifiable ceasefire between the Maoists and Nepalese Army is necessary to underpin a comprehensive peace process. The UK is ready to assist the Government of Nepal in supporting a peace process and ceasefire. However, it is for the Government of Nepal first to request help from the UN or any other third party to facilitate this process.

Sudan

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what representations she has made to the Sudanese Government on the reported operations in Darfur of Chadian armed groups supported by Khartoum.

Margaret Beckett: We are aware that Chadian rebels and Darfur militia are continuing to mount cross-border attacks into Eastern Chad from Darfur, which have led to the displacement of 50,000 Chadians. At the same time, there are reports of Darfur rebels continuing to be supported by Chad. We are urging both Governments to restore calm to the region without the use of violence. We are also pressing the Government of Sudan to fulfil their obligations under the Darfur Peace Agreement, which includes disarming and expelling foreign fighters, including Chadian rebel groups, as soon as possible.

Sudan

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment she has made of the Janjaweed militia operating in Eastern Chad; and what implications such activity has for British policy towards the Sudanese Government.

Ian McCartney: There are indications that some Janjaweed/Arab militia groups are now operating in the border area inside Eastern Chad, while others continue to mount attacks from inside Darfur. We are concerned for the safety and security of the estimated 50,000 Chadians displaced as a result of attacks and violence in the east of the country, and for the 200,000 refugees from Darilir now sheltering in camps in Eastern Chad. The UK provided 5 million to the humanitarian response in Chad last year and is providing an additional 4 million this year. We continue to monitor the situation closely.
	We are pressing the Government of Sudan to disarm the 'Janjaweed' in accordance with their international obligations as set out in UN Security Council Resolution 1556 and the Darfur Peace Agreement.

Sudan

William Hague: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs if she will make a statement on the progress of the International Criminal Court investigations on Darfur.

Margaret Beckett: The International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor, Luis Moreno Ocampo, gave his latest report to the UN Security Council on 14 June, pursuant to UN Security Council Resolution 1593, which referred the situation in Darfur to the ICC. The report set out evidence of large-scale massacres, targeting of civilians and systematic rape occurring in Darfur. It also said the ICC would now move to complete its investigations of those individuals with greatest responsibility for the most serious crimes in Darfur. A full copy of this report is on the ICC website at:http://www.icc-cpi.int/cases/Darfur/s()205/s0205_un.html.
	There must be no impunity for those who have committed abuses of human rights in Darfur. Those responsible must be brought to justice. The UK Government will continue to support the ICC as it takes forward its investigation and to maintain pressure on all parties, including the Government of Sudan, to provide full co-operation in response to any ICC request.

Advertising Campaigns

John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what advertising campaigns her Department and its predecessors have run since July 2004; and what the  (a) date and  (b) cost was of each.

Angela Smith: In the financial year 2004-05 the advertising campaigns run by the then Office of the Deputy Prime Minister were as follows:
	 Fire SafetyAn advertising campaign to reduce the number of deaths and serious injuries caused by domestic fires.
	 (a) September and February
	 (b) 4.4 million
	 The Elected Regional Assemblies campaign to set out the case for Elected Regional Assemblies in the Northeast
	 (a) July/August
	 (b) 1.5 million
	In the financial year 200506 the advertising campaigns run by the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister were as follows:
	 Fire Safety
	 (a) September and February
	 (b) 3.3 million
	 The campaign on the registration of landlords who own houses of multiple occupancy.
	 (a) February and March
	 (b) 1.4 million
	In the financial year 2006-07 the advertising campaigns run by the department to date are as follows.
	 Local E-Gov campaign Connect to your Council designed to encourage people to use on-line local government services, to deliver efficiency and cost savings to local authorities
	 (a) May through to July
	 (b) 5 million.
	 Fire Service recruitment campaign the encourage women to apply for posts in the Fire and Rescue Service.
	 (a) May through to August
	 (b) 800,000
	 The campaign to inform business of their new responsibilities under the Fire Order Reform.
	 (a) June through to September
	 (b) 1.3 million
	 The trade sector Home Information Pack campaign.
	(a) April through to September.
	(b) 557,000.
	 A continuation of the advertising campaign on the registration of landlords
	 (a) April to June.
	 (b) 300,000.
	 The Department for Communities and Local Government are planning to run Fire Safety advertising.
	 (a) September and February
	 (b) 1.8 million.

Agency Staff

Katy Clark: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what average hourly rate was paid by her Department to each employment agency for staff employed through agencies in 2005-06.

Angela Smith: The Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) has a framework agreement with three employment agencies.
	The average hourly rate paid to each of them in 2005-06 was 12.82, 13.83 and 12.34 respectively.
	DCLG uses agencies to supply temporary staff to cover short term needs.

Birmingham Tornado

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what progress has been made in repairing the areas of Birmingham affected by the tornado in July 2005; and if she will make a statement.

Angela Smith: The information is as follows:
	 Housing
	The serious damage to housing was in the Sparkbrook/Moseley area, where many houses suffered damage to roofs and supporting walls.
	 Council Housing
	The city council owned a handful of homes in the tornado affected area; any that were damaged have had repairs completed and the tenants are back in their homes.
	 Registered Social Housing
	Most of the social housing in the area is owned by a small number of registered social landlords (RSLs) and in all around 900 of their homes suffered damage; some sustaining severe damage to the main structure, making them structurally unsound.
	A number of residents (mostly RSL tenants) had to be temporarily re-housed while repairs works were carried out, but the vast majority are now back in their homes.
	The four largest RSLs in the area report that all repairs have been completed and all their tenants have returned home.
	 Private Sector Housing
	A smaller number of private sector homes suffered damage, and although the city council offered loans to residents for repair costs, the majority of tenants were able to access either insurance payments or make separate funding arrangements.
	 Parks and Public Open Spaces
	Parks and public open spaces in the affected area suffered considerable damage, with park infrastructure such as railings, footpaths, lighting columns, litter bins, benches, play equipment and signs badly damaged. Over 500 trees were destroyed90 per cent. of the total.
	All health and safety issues and structural features such as paths and boundary railings have now been repaired and/or replaced in the parks and public open spaces affected
	by the tornado.
	Some replacement tree planting was carried out last autumn, sponsored by the city council's service providers, and there are plans to carry out additional planting this coming autumn.
	A redevelopment plan for the worst affected site, Balsall Heath Park, is being developed with local residents.
	 Businesses
	An initial survey of the affected area indicated there were 114 business physically affected by the tornado. The majority of local traders are now back in business.
	 Investment
	The city council have provided the emergency/recovery costs associated with the tornado, this accounted for an overall figure of 4.3 million. Further to this, 1.0 million of capital investment funding is being approved.
	RSLs in the area have also invested around 6 million to repair damaged homes.

Command Papers

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if she will list the Unnumbered Command Papers produced by her Department in each session since 1976; by what means  (a) hon. Members and  (b) members of the public can (i) inspect and (ii) obtain copies; and if she will make a statement.

Angela Smith: Since the Department for Communities and Local Government was formed on 5 May 2006, it has not produced any Unnumbered Command Papers.

Departmental Travel

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what plans she has to ensure that all flights undertaken by Ministers and officials in her Department are carbon neutral; and if she will make a statement.

Angela Smith: All central government ministerial and official air travel is being offset from 1 April 2006. Departmental aviation emissions are calculated on an annual basis and subsequently offset through payments to a central fund. The fund purchases certified emissions reductions credits from energy efficiency and renewable energy projects with sustainable development benefits, located in developing countries.

Golf Courses

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government whether Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs treats the greens of golf courses as subject to business rates if the green is  (a) private property and  (b) common land.

Phil Woolas: The Valuation Office Agency, an executive Agency of Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs, has the statutory responsibility for assessing properties for rating purposes. As a non-domestic property, a golf course will usually be liable to business rates. Being an integral part of the course, the greens are valued as part of the whole rather than attracting any separate liability. The basis of valuation for rating purposes of a golf course applies equally to private, public or municipal courses, although the level of value will vary to reflect differences in quality and geographical location. The greens of a golf course are therefore subject to business rates regardless of whether they lie on private property or common land.
	There are exceptions, however, depending on the facts of the case. It may be that a golf club is not considered to be in exclusive occupation of the course, thereby failing one of the requirements for rateability. Alternatively, a course may be exempt from rating if it is held as part of a larger public park and available for free and unrestricted use by the public.

Local Government Reorganisation

Gordon Prentice: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what the cost was of each local government reorganisation in England since 1981.

Phil Woolas: Information on the costs of restructuring local government is not held centrally. However in the case of the local government reorganisations in the 1990's, resources in the form of unsupported supplementary credit approvals (SCAs) totalling 492.3 million were made available to reorganised authorities to meet the one off indirect costs of reorganisation.

Regional Funding (South-West)

Tobias Ellwood: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government if she will list the Governmental organisations with responsibility  (a) to spend and  (b) to allocate funds in the South-West.

Phil Woolas: The governmental organisations for whose expenditure and allocation of funds the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (DCLG) is responsible are the DCLG itself, its executive agencies and its sponsored non departmental public bodies.
	A full list of these is included in the Department's annual report and updated from time-to-time on the DCLG website. Those with the authority to allocate or administer funds within the South-West are the Commission for Racial Equality, the Community Development Foundation, English Partnerships/Commission for the New Towns, FireBuy and the Housing Corporation.
	In addition, DCLG has responsibility for the regeneration funding administered by the Department for Trade and Industry-sponsored Regional Development Agencies, for European Regional Development Fund programmes and (jointly with the Department for Work and Pensions) for European Social Fund spending in the South-West.
	The Government Office for the South-West delivers a wide range of Government policies and programmes on behalf of 10 Whitehall departments (including DCLG). These together aim to regenerate communities, fight crime, tackle housing needs, improve public health, raise standards in education and skills, tackle countryside issues and reduce unemployment.

Travellers

Andrew Selous: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government what powers are available to planning authorities enabling preventative action to be taken in relation to the unauthorised development of land sold to travellers.

Meg Munn: Section 187B of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 provides that planning authorities may, if they consider it necessary, apply to the court for an injunction to restrain an actual or anticipated breach of planning control.

Valuation Office Agency

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Brentwood and Ongar of 21 June 2006,  Official Report, column 1877W, on the Valuation Office Agency, whether the plot sizes that Ordnance Survey data are used for include data for the plots of  (a) open spaces and  (b) residential gardens.

Phil Woolas: Ordnance Survey maps will show  (a) open spaces and  (b) residential gardens. Whether these are within the plot of a domestic property, which is to be taken as part of a dwelling for council tax banding purposes (as defined in section 3 of the Local Government Finance Act 1992) is dependant upon what land belongs to or is enjoyed with that domestic property.

Parliamentary Questions

Peter Bone: To ask the Leader of the House if he will bring forward proposals to improve the accuracy of parliamentary answers and the speed with which they are provided.

Jack Straw: As I stated to the hon. Member in a written answer on 12 June 2006,  Official Report, column 885W, I attach great importance to the accuracy and timeliness of responses to parliamentary questions tabled in the House and I have raised the matter directly with ministerial colleagues.
	Departments should answer named day questions on that day and endeavour to reply to ordinary written questions within a working week.
	I refer the hon. Member also to the adjournment debate on 28 June 2006 on this matter,  Official Report, column 344, in which it was noted that the substantial growth in the number of parliamentary questions tabled can place the system under pressure and that the time might be suitable for a further review of the system by the House.
	My office continues to offer guidance to other Departments about the handling of parliamentary questions.

Pension Reform

Peter Lilley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will make a statement on progress with his plans for pension reform.

James Purnell: There is a broad consensus around the basic principles of pension reform as proposed in the White Paper. But we are continuing a programme of active engagement with all stakeholders to cement this consensus. That programme will include Parliament, representatives of employers, consumers and the financial sector as well as the general public.
	This is in addition to the formal consultation on the White Paper, which closes on September 11(th). We will be publishing a summary of responses once the consultation has closed. We intend to bring forward legislation on Pensions Reform during the second session of this Parliament, subject to approval by the Parliamentary Business Managers.

Benefit Claimants

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the take-up rate of council tax benefit was in  (a) Yeovil constituency and  (b) Somerset in each year since 1996-97; and how many pensioners (i) were entitled to and (ii) received council tax benefit in each year.

James Plaskitt: Estimates of take-up and entitlement for council tax benefit are not available below national level; the latest available information is in Income Related Benefits Estimates of Take Up in 2003-04, a copy of which is in the Library.
	Figures for the number of council tax benefit claimants are not available broken down by parliamentary constituency. Figures for pensioners in receipt of council tax benefit are not available prior to 2004. The available information is in the tables.:
	
		
			  Council tax benefit recipients aged 60 and over 
			   Number of recipients 
			  South Somerset district council  
			 November 2004 2,350 
			 November 2005 2,200 
			   
			  Somerset  
			 November 2004 7,460 
			 November 2005 7,090 
			  Notes:  1. The data refers to benefit units, which may be a single person or a couple.  2. Caseloads have been rounded to the nearest 10.  3. Council tax benefit totals exclude any second adult rebate cases.  4. 'Aged 60 and over' is defined as benefit units where the claimant and/or partner are aged 60 and over. Therefore figures will contain some claimants aged under 60 where there is a partner aged over 60 years.   Source:  Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit Management Information System Quarterly 100 per cent. caseload stock-count taken in November 2004 and November 2005.

Child Support Agency

Madeleine Moon: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what facilities are available to the Child Support Agency to verify a non-residential parent's  (a) address and  (b) working arrangements.

James Plaskitt: The administration of the Child Support Agency is the matter for the Chief Executive. He will write to the right hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Stephen Geraghty:
	In reply to your recent Parliamentary Questions about the Child Support Agency the Secretary of State promised a substantive reply from the Chief Executive.
	You asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what facilities are available to the Child Support Agency to verify a non-residential parent's  (a) address and  (b) working arrangements.
	The Child Support Agency is able to verify a non-resident parent's address using the Departmental Central Index and Customer Information System computer records. If necessary we can also approach the appropriate Local Authority to provide any address information held for council tax purposes. From July we anticipate that this will also include access to credit reference agency data for trace purposes and later this year we will begin to use external suppliers to help trace clients. The Agency compliance officers can visit a non-resident parent at the address where the non-resident parent is thought to be residing to confirm the address details.
	In relation to verification of the Non Resident Parents working arrangements, the Agency is able to issue requests for employment details to Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs. This provides information from P45/46 and P14 records, National Insurance records and Tax credit records (where there is an indication that New Tax Credits are in payment). The Agency can also check with the clients employer where known.
	If appropriate the Agency can use inspectors to visit business premises in pursuit of relevant information.
	I hope you find this helpful.

Council Tax Benefit

John Barrett: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the take-up rate of council tax benefit was in  (a) Edinburgh, West constituency and  (b) other Edinburgh parliamentary constituencies in each year since 1996-97; and how many pensioners (i) were entitled to and (ii) received council tax benefit in each year.

James Plaskitt: Estimates of take-up and entitlement for Council Tax Benefit are not available below national level; the latest available information is in Income Related Benefits Estimates of Take Up in 2003-04, a copy of which is in the Library.
	Figures for the number of council tax benefit claimants are not available broken down by parliamentary constituency. Figures for pensioners in receipt of council tax benefit are not available prior to 2004. The available information is in the following table.
	
		
			  Council tax benefit recipients aged 60 and over: Edinburgh city council 
			  November  Number 
			 2004 18,450 
			 2005 17,490 
			  Notes:1. The data refers to benefit units, which may be a single person or a couple.2. Caseloads have been rounded to the nearest 10.3. Council tax benefit totals exclude any second adult rebate cases.4. 'Aged 60 and over' is defined as benefit units where the claimant and/or partner are aged 60 and over. Therefore figures will contain some claimants aged under 60 where there is a partner aged over 60 years. Source: Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit Management Information System Quarterly 100 per cent. caseload stock-count taken in November 2004 and November 2005.

Departmental Websites

Charles Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many websites there are within his responsibilities; and what the total cost of maintaining such websites was in the last year for which figures are available.

James Purnell: The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions is responsible for 21 websites. These were listed in PQ/06/65209 and in the following tables.
	Table A lists those websites operated by Department for Work and Pensions where
	we are responsible for the content.
	
		
			  Table A: 
			  Website Name  Website Address  Contracted and quantifiable costs () 
			 Department for Work and Pensions www.dwp.gov.uk  
			 Jobcentre Plus www.jobcentreplus.gov.uk 106,500 
			 The Pensions Service www.thepensionservice.gov.uk 182,000 
			 Child Support Agency www.csa.gov.uk 31,000 
			 Directgov Disabled People and Carers www.direct.gov.uk/disabilitv 500,000 
			 Sections www.direct.gov.uk/carers  
			 Directgov Over 50s Section www.direct.gov.uk/over50s 145,553 
			 Age Positive www.agepositive.gov.uk  
			 Employment Zones www.employmentzones.gov.uk  
			 Benefit Fraud Inspectorate www.bfi.gov.uk  
			 Office for Disability Issues www.officefordisability.gov.uk  
			 European Social Fund www.esf.gov.uk 41,000 
			 Total Table A  1,006,053 
			  Notes:   1 Production, management and maintenance of DWP websites is carried out by the Department's own in-house E-Communications team. It is not possible to quantify internal costs for each site but contracted and quantifiable costs have been included where possible.  2 Contracted and quantifiable costs include payments to suppliers for services such as research, user testing and site builds, and payments to interim personnel.  3 Departmental sites are hosted by our IT contractors. In most cases it is not possible to separate these costs from contracted costs. 
		
	
	Table B lists those websites operated by the Department for Work and Pensions but where we are not responsible for the content.
	
		
			  Table B 
			  Website Name  Website Address  Contracted and quantifiable costs 
			 Disability Employment Advisory Committee www.deac.org.uk  
			 Disability Living Allowance Advisory Board www.dlaab.org.uk  
			 Ethnic Minority Employment Task Force www.emetaskforce.gov.uk  
			 Independent Case Examiner www.ind-case-exam.org.uk  
			 Industrial Injuries Advisory Council www.iiac.org.uk  
			 National Employment Panel www.nationalemploymentpanel.gov.uk  
			 Employer Task Force www.employertaskforce.org.uk (1) 
			 Pensions At Work www.pensionsatwork.org (1) 
			 Pensions Commission www.pensionscommission.org.uk (1) 
			 Social Security Advisory Committee www.ssac.org.uk  
			 Total Table B  0 
			 (1 )The cost for these three sites is included in the figure for the Pension Service site in Table A Notes:   1 Production, management and maintenance of DWP websites is carried out by the Department's own in-house E-Communications team. It is not possible to quantify internal costs for each site but contracted and quantifiable costs have been included where possible.  2 Contracted and quantifiable costs include payments to suppliers for services such as research, user testing and site builds, and payments to interim personnel.  3 Departmental sites are hosted by our IT contractors. In most cases it is not possible to separate these costs from contracted costs 
		
	
	Table C shows the total running costs for the 21 websites
	
		
			  Table C 
			
			 Total Table A 1,006,053 
			 Total Table B 0 
			 Total 1,006,053 
		
	
	The following special points should be noted:
	1. The Department is continuing to develop services on-line. The website costs do not include the development of e-services, and is restricted to website costs, which provide the user access. Online services may require development of 'back office' processes and redevelopment of the department's legacy' systems.
	2. There have been a number of similar/related PQs since 2002.

Disability Living Allowance

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what action he is taking to reduce the level of  (a) fraud and  (b) error in relation to disability living allowance; and if he will make a statement.

James Plaskitt: The Disability and Carers Service (DCS), the agency responsible for administering disability living allowance (DLA), is committed to reducing fraud and error in DLA.
	All allegations of benefit fraud are carefully considered and, where appropriate, referred for investigation to the Fraud Investigation Service.
	DLA cases are subject to a periodic enquiry process. This process has led to over 100,000 case interventions since its introduction in 1999. The periodic inquiry process has recently been refocused to target those cases with the highest propensity for change to ensure that these cases are correct.
	DCS is currently testing an improved Customer Case Management (CCM) system. CCM is structured, IT-based support for decision-making, enabling greater consistency in both the outcome of decisions and in the level and length of awards.
	DCS is also reviewing the DLA checking regime. This ensures the standard and quality of DLA/AA decision making across the agency.

Disability Living Allowance

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many households in Wakefield include a person with a learning disability who receives the care component of disability living allowance at the  (a) highest,  (b) middle and  (c) lowest rate.

Anne McGuire: The administration of disability living allowance is a matter for the Chief Executive of the Disability and Carers Service, Mr. Terry Moran. He will write to the hon. Member with the information requested.
	 Letter from Terry Moran:
	 You asked the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many households in Wakefield include a person with a learning disability who receives the care component of disability living allowance at the  (a) highest  (b) middle and  (c) lowest rate.
	The Minister for Disabled People, Anne McGuire MP, promised you a substantive reply from the Chief Executive of the Disability and Carers Service.
	The information available is in the following table:
	
		
			  Recipients of disability living allowance with learning difficulties by rate of care award as at November 2005 in Wakefield parliamentary constituency 
			  Care component  
			 Total with care component 380 
			 Higher rate 110 
			 Middle rate 90 
			 Lowest rate 180 
			  Notes:1. Numbers are rounded to the nearest 10.2. Totals may not sum due to rounding.3. Parliamentary constituencies are assigned by matching postcodes against the relevant postcode directory.4. Figures are based on the care component condition only. Source: DWP, WPLS 100 per cent. data. 
		
	
	 I hope this is helpful.

Fraud

David Ruffley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the total set-up costs were of the Targeting Fraud website; and what its total running costs have been in each year.

James Plaskitt: There are no separately quantifiable set-up or running costs for the site, which was developed internally by the Department's in-house e-communications team.

Housing Benefit

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people have been in receipt of housing benefit in each year from 1985-86; and if he will make a statement.

James Plaskitt: The housing benefit scheme was reformed in April 1988. Information for the old scheme is not available. The available information is in the table.
	
		
			  Housing benefit recipients in Great Britain each November 1988 to 2005 
			   Number 
			 1988 3,934,000 
			 1989 3,889,000 
			 1990 3,925,000 
			 1991 4,155,000 
			 1992 4,381,970 
			 1993 4,628,110 
			 1994 4,710,860 
			 1995 4,759,860 
			 1996 4,709,820 
			 1997 4,546,650 
			 1998 4,382,390 
			 1999 4,147,870 
			 2000 3,900,620 
			 2001 3,818,400 
			 2002 3,796,260 
			 2003 3,806,590 
			 2004 3,943,900 
			 2005 3,975,230 
			  Notes:1. Figures for 1988 to 1991 are rounded to the nearest thousand and figures from 1992 onwards have been rounded to the nearest 10.2. The data refers to benefit units, which may be a single person or a couple.3. Figures for any non-responding authorities have been estimated.4. Housing benefit figures exclude any Extended Payment cases. Source: Social Security Statistics 1993. Housing Benefit and council tax benefit Management Information System Quarterly 100 per cent. caseload stock-count taken in November 1992 to 2005.

Incapacity Benefit

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many incapacity benefit claimants whom Pathways to Work has placed in work were helped by private and voluntary sector organisations working in conjunction with JobCentre Plus.

Jim Murphy: holding answer 24 May 2006
	The New Deal for Disabled People (NDDP) is offered as part of the Pathways to Work Choices package and is delivered through a network of job brokers from the private and voluntary sector who are contracted to help customers find, secure and sustain paid employment.
	Between October 2003 and February 2006; 22,350 individuals have been helped into work through Pathways to Work, of which, 5,070 (22.7 per cent.) were helped by a New Deal for Disabled People Job Broker.
	From 7 February 2005 those existing IB customers who started an incapacity benefit IB claim (excluding Personal Capability Assessment exempt cases) in the two years before the Pathways pilots started have been subject to three additional mandatory Work Focussed Interviews (WFIs).
	Between 7 February 2005 and the end of February 2006, the mandatory extension of Pathways has helped 980 individuals into work, of which, 260 (26.5 per cent.) were helped by an NDDP Job Broker.
	The delivery of the mandatory extension to IB customers takes three months to complete and we would expect to see more people entering work in the months after this process. Therefore the latest available performance information does not yet give a true reflection of performance.
	 Note:
	Pathways to Work data and data for the extension to existing customers is to February 2006.

New Deal

Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what percentage of leavers from  (a) New Deal for Young People and  (b) New Deal 25 plus recommenced claiming benefits within 12 months of leaving the programme in each year since it began.

Jim Murphy: The information is in the following table.
	
		
			   Percentage of New Deal leavers who recommenced claiming benefits within 12 months of leaving the programme 
			   New Deal for Young People (percentage)  New Deal 25 Plus (percentage) 
			 19981 36 31 
			 1999 50 33 
			 2000 52 35 
			 2001 53 35 
			 2002 53 37 
			 2003 51 37 
			 2004 49 38 
			 2005 48 36 
			  Notes:  1. New Deal for Young People was launched in January 1998; New Deal 25 plus in July 1998.  2. The latest benefit data is to February 2006, therefore allowing for a 12 month gap only New Deal leavers to February 2005 are included.  3. The benefits included are bereavement benefit, incapacity benefit, invalid care allowance, income support, jobseeker's allowance, severe disablement allowance and widows benefit.  4. A benefit claim has only been included if it is a new claim after leaving the New Deal spell. People can leave New Deal and continue a benefit claimthese people are not included as recommencing a claim to benefit.   Source:  Information Directorate, DWP 
		
	
	The New Deal has been successful in helping more than 1.5 million people into work including more than 920,000 people through New Deal for Young People (NDYP) and New Deal 25 plus (ND25 plus). It has helped to virtually eradicate long term youth claimant unemployment and has also helped to cut long-term adult employment by almost three quarters, close to its lowest for 30 years. Of those who get a job through the mandatory New Deals, more than 80 per cent. stay off Jobseeker's Allowance for at least 13 weeks.
	Inevitably, in a dynamic labour market, some people return to Jobseeker's Allowance or Income Support after finding a job through New Deal, nevertheless, they will have benefited from their time in employment and will have more employment skills than they did before finding work through New Deal.

Pension Credit

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many residents in  (a) Yeovil constituency,  (b) Somerset and  (c) the south west receive pension credit.

James Purnell: The information is in the table.
	
		
			  Individual beneficiaries in Yeovil constituency, Somerset local authorities and the south west, February 2006. 
			   Individual Beneficiaries( 1) 
			  Parliamentary constituency  
			 Yeovil 5,450 
			   
			  Local authority  
			 Bath and North East Somerset 7,770 
			 North Somerset 10,200 
			 South Somerset 8,230 
			 West Somerset 2,510 
			   
			 Government office region  
			 The South West 274,020 
			 (1) The number of individual beneficiaries includes both claimants and their partners.   Notes:   1. These figures are early estimates. The preferred data source for figures supplied by DWP is the Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study (WPLS). However, the figures provided are the latest available figures which are taken from the GMS scan at 17 February 2006. These are adjusted using the historical relationship between WPLS and GMS data to give an estimate of the final WPLS figure. Average amounts are displayed as at the scan reference data of 17 February 2006.  2. The number of individual beneficiaries are rounded to the nearest ten.  3. Parliamentary constituency/Government office region and local authority are assigned by matching postcodes against the relevant postcode directory.   Source:   DWP 100 per cent. data from the Generalised Matching Service (GMS). Pension credit scan taken as at 17 February 2006.

Pensions

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what proportion of pensioners will be eligible for means-tested assistance  (a) under present policies and  (b) under the proposals in the White Paper in each year up to 2020.

James Purnell: holding answer 22 June 2006
	The information requested is not available in full. Information relating to pension credit is shown in the following tables. This includes the majority of pensioner households eligible for means-tested assistance.
	Table 1 shows the estimated proportion of all pensioner households eligible for pension credit for 2006-07 and 2007-08 and Table 2 shows projections from 2008-09 to 2020-21.
	
		
			  Table 1: Estimated proportion of pensioner households eligible for pension credit under the current system 
			   Percentage 
			 2006-07 45 
			 2007-08 46 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Projected proportion of pensioner households eligible for pension credit for selected years under the current system and the White Paper proposals 
			   Percentage under: 
			   Current system  White Paper proposals 
			 2008-09 46 45 
			 2009-10 46 45 
			 2010-11 46 44 
			 2011-12 48 45 
			 2012-13 48 45 
			 2013-14 48 44 
			 2014-15 49 44 
			 2015-16 50 44 
			 2016-17 50 43 
			 2017-18 50 42 
			 2018-19 51 41 
			 2019-20 53 41 
			 2020-21 54 41 
			  Notes:   1. Projections of the proportion of pensioner households eligible for pension credit are sensitive to modelling assumptions and to projected changes in the distribution of pensioner incomes.   2. The estimate of proportions shown are the mid-points of projections taken from two separate micro-simulation models. Modelling of the reform proposals does not assume any increase in private saving from the introduction of personal accounts, which would further reduce the numbers eligible for pension credit.   3. The projections under the current system assume that basic state pension is uprated in line with prices and the standard guarantee credit with earnings each year. It should be noted that there is a Government commitment to uprate the standard guarantee credit with earnings until 2008. Treasury projections for the current system assume price uprating of the standard guarantee credit beyond 2008.  4. The reform projections assume: continued earnings uprating of the standard guarantee credit; the savings credit maximum is uprated by earnings from 2008 and then by prices from 2015; earnings uprating of the basic state pension from 2012; measures to improve coverage of the basic state pension described in the White Paper.   5. Estimates cover all those aged above women's state pension age in the private household population of Great Britain.   6. Estimates account for equalisation of state pension age between 2010 and 2020.   7. Estimates are calibrated to the mid-points of the 2004-05 National Statistics range estimates of non-eligibility to pension credit, which adjust 2004-05 Family Resources Survey data to take account of possible biases in reporting. Although the estimates are not presented as ranges, they are subject to a margin of uncertainty.

Seasonal Workers

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what support his Department provides for  (a) seasonal workers when they are out of work and  (b) the rural unemployed; and if he will make a statement.

Jim Murphy: All customers who are unemployed and eligible for benefits, including seasonal workers and the rural unemployed, are able to access a wide range of services and programmes provided by Jobcentre Plus provided they meet the eligibility criteria. In instances where a seasonal worker may not be eligible for benefits they are still able to use the services of Jobcentre Plus in their search for temporary employment.
	The Jobcentre Plus website displays details job opportunities and advisers encourage customers to access these facilities through their local libraries or community centres to maintain their contact with the labour market. Where a customer has to travel to the local office they are paid their fares at the local transport rates. For customers who live in remote or island areas Jobcentre Plus staff can carry out interviews locally.
	Jobcentre Plus also offers the facility of postal signing to customers living further than one hour by public transport from the nearest local office, or where the journey would involve using transport not regarded as local such as an aircraft or ferry.
	Rural areas with particular problems of unemployment and worklessness will also benefit from the Deprived Areas Fund, to be operational from October 2006. This will provide Jobcentre Plus district managers with flexibility to invest funds at a local level in a way which they decide best meets the needs of their local workless residents.

SERPS

Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people are estimated to have contracted out of the state earnings related pension scheme.

James Purnell: Information on the number of people contracted out of the additional state pension (the state second pension, formerly the state earnings related pension scheme) in each year during the period 1978-79 to 2003-04 is in the table.
	
		
			  Type of Scheme 
			  Million 
			Defined Contribution 
			  Tax year  Defined Benefit  Occupational  Personal/Stakeholder 
			 1978-79 9.3 0.1  
			 1979-80 9.6 0.1  
			 1980-81 9.6 0.1  
			 1981-82 9.3 0.1  
			 1982-83 9.1 0.1  
			 1983-84 8.9 0.1  
			 1984-85 8.7 0.1  
			 1985-86 9.0 0.1  
			 1986-87 9.0 0.2  
			 1987-88 8.8 0.2 2.6 
			 1988-89 9.0 0.5 2.9 
			 1989-90 8.9 0.7 3.6 
			 1990-91 8.7 0.7 3.9 
			 1991-92 8.4 0.6 4.0 
			 1992-93 8.1 0.6 4.1 
			 1993-94 7.8 0.6 3.9 
			 1994-95 7.6 0.6 3.8 
			 1995-96 7.7 0.7 3.6 
			 1996-97 7.7 0.7 3.5 
			 1997-98 7.6 0.8 3.5 
			 1998-99 7.7 0.8 3.5 
			 1999-2000 7.6 0.7 3.5 
			 2000-01 7.8 0.7 3.5 
			 2001-02 7.7 0.7 3.5 
			 2002-03 7.7 0.6 3.3 
			 2003-04 7.6 0.6 2.9 
			  Notes:   1. The data for 2003-04 are provisional and may be subject to change in future publications.  2. 2003-04 is the latest year for which NIRS2 contracted-out data are available.  3. The state earnings related pension scheme was reformed by the state second pension from 2002-03.   Source:  Department for Work and Pensions, Second Tier Pension Provision 1978-79 to 2003-04.

Departmental Emissions

Christopher Huhne: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what recent estimate she has made of the carbon emissions of her Department; what commitment she has made to reducing such emissions; and if she will make a statement.

Bridget Prentice: My Department's last published statement on carbon emissions is 14,900 tonnes of carbon equivalent (tC) for the 2004-05 reporting year. The DCA is fully committed to reducing carbon emissions and invests in a program of energy surveys to identify areas of potential energy savings. In addition to this the department has also opened discussions with the Carbon Trust to look at further methods of reducing emissions including further reduction in usage and self generation.

Dr. David Kelly

Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs pursuant to her answer of 14 June 2006,  Official Report, column 1267W, on Dr. David Kelly, on what date she expects the original documents supplied to the Hutton Inquiry, currently held at the National Archives, to be made available for public inspection.

Harriet Harman: The Inquiry papers are at the National Archives for cataloguing in accordance with archival standards. No date has been set for completion of this work.

Dr. David Kelly

Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what matters were discussed when officials met the Oxfordshire Coroner on 11 August 2003; and whether they included consideration of the issuing of a death certificate for Dr. Kelly.

Harriet Harman: I understand that only the certification and registration of the death was discussed.

Dr. David Kelly

Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs who requested the meeting between officials and the Oxfordshire Coroner on11 August 2003; and who was at the meeting.

Harriet Harman: The meeting was requested by the Oxfordshire coroner. The Worcestershire coroner and Honorary Secretary of the Coroners Society, a senior lawyer and the Head of Tribunals Strategy Branch of the then Lord Chancellor's Department were also present.

Dr. David Kelly

Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs pursuant to her answer of26 June 2006,  Official Report, column 304W, on Dr. David Kelly, under what authority the Oxfordshire Coroner conducted a resumed hearing of the inquest into the death of Dr. Kelly on 14 August 2003; and for what purpose.

Harriet Harman: The coroner resumed the inquest on14 August 2003 in accordance with the authority he has under section 17A(2) of the Coroners Act 1988. The purpose of the resumed hearing was to take evidence as to the interim cause of death thus enabling the coroner to fulfil his duty of sending the Registrar of Deaths the necessary particulars concerning the death.

Elections

Iain Wright: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what steps she is taking to increase  (a) voter registration and  (b) electoral turnout in areas of deprivation.

Bridget Prentice: The Government have embarked on a number of initiatives to promote participation in democracy. It does not directly promote voter turnout in elections; that is the role of political parties, the candidates and The Electoral Commission.
	The Electoral Administration Bill makes a number of changes to improve the registration process. These include a new duty setting out the minimum steps that the ERO will be expected to take to ensure a comprehensive register and enabling people to register after an election has been called. The Bill also provides a new power for returning officers to promote participation at elections, and the Government have made available 2.5 million to support the new power.

Family Proceedings

David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills 
	(1)  how many judges were involved in family proceedings in  (a) 2004-05 and  (b) 2005-06;
	(2)  how many vacancies for judges in family proceedings there were in  (a) 2004-05 and  (b) 2005-06;
	(3)  what plans he has to recruit judges in family proceedings.

Harriet Harman: This information is not available in the form requested. There are 19 Judges of the Family Division of the High Court, apart from its President, and 20 District Judges in the Principal Registry of the Family Division. A further 166 judges are authorised to hear High Court family cases as Deputy High Court Judges. Family cases might also be heard in the Court of Appeal by any of the five Heads of Division, or37 Lords Justices of Appeal, or on appeal to the House of Lords by any of the 12 Lords of Appeal in Ordinary.
	There are currently 446 judges below the High Court with authorisations to hear private law Children Act cases in the county courts (dealing, for example, with contact and residence orders) and 594 judges below the High Court with authorisations to hear public law Children Act cases in the county courts (such as care proceedings).
	Not all judges with such authorisations will, however, sit in family proceedings in any particular year. Other judges may deal with other forms of family proceedings including divorce and ancillary relief. Family proceedings other than divorce and ancillary relief are also dealt with by District Judges (magistrates courts) when sitting in the family proceedings courts.
	Apart from the Family Division of the High Court and the Principal Registry there has been no fixed number of judges dealing with family proceedings, and so the number of vacancies for judges in family proceedings is impossible to quantify. No posts have been left vacant in the Family Division or the Principal Registry. Judges at different levels are deployed according to the needs of the courts.
	The Judicial Appointments Commission is running a selection exercise for the District Bench and this may include judges who will sit in family proceedings. In addition it will be possible to ask the JAC to run selection exercises to fill vacancies in the High Court Bench and Circuit Bench and this may include specific family posts.

Inquests

Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs if she will list the occasions on which an inquest has been adjourned under section 17A of the Coroners Act 1988; and how many deaths were involved in each case.

Harriet Harman: Inquests have been adjourned under section 17A of the Coroners Act 1988 on four occasions: (1) Ladbroke Grove Rail Crashinquests involving31 deaths adjourned in February 2000; (2) deaths connected with Dr. Harold Shipmaninquests totalling 311 were adjourned in May 2001 and July 2002; (3) Dr. David Kellyinquest adjourned in August 2003; (4) the Gaul fishing vesselinquests involving four deaths were adjourned in November 2003.

Inquests

Norman Baker: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs pursuant to her answer of 26 June 2006,  Official Report, column 305W, on inquests, how many inquests have been adjourned since 1 January 1997 because of the creation of an inquiry; and how many of these were subsequently  (a) resumed and  (b) not resumed.

Harriet Harman: 347 inquests have been adjourned under section 17A of the Coroners Act 1988 since 1 January 1997 following the setting up of an inquiry. None of these inquests has been resumed.

Voter Registration

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Minister of State, Department for Constitutional Affairs what the cost was of her Department's voter registration campaign for the 2006 local elections.

Bridget Prentice: In London for May 2006 local government elections, the Government spent 192,571 on the 1824 Collective campaign which promoted awareness of voter registration among London's urban youth using the creative concept of an urban music collective to appeal to 18 to 24-year-olds.

Clinical Trial Regulations

Richard Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for Health when she will bring forward the proposed amendment to the Clinical Trial Regulations of 2004 on consent; and what steps she is taking  (a) to halt and  (b) to reverse the reductions in emergency care research in the meantime.

Andy Burnham: The Government are committed to the support for emergency care research. Following detailed consultation with those involved in emergency research, a provision was included in the UK Clinical Trials Regulations(1) which precludes incapacitated adults participating in trials without the prior consent of their legal representative. However after the regulations came into force, researchers involved in a large trial requiring immediate administration of a clot busting drug to resuscitate patients following a heart attack found it was impracticable to obtain consent using the provisions of the regulations. This was because the patient had usually lost capacity to consent and the limited time available for administering the trial drug did not allow contact to be made with the legal representative.
	The Government therefore consulted on a proposed amendment to the regulations which would enable incapacitated adults to be entered into trials prior to the consent of a legal representative having been obtained where the trial was of a medicine to be used in emergency situations. Consent would subsequently need to be obtained. The proposal received wide support.
	However, the occurrence of serious adverse reactions in a drug trial in healthy volunteers in March has lead to heightened scrutiny of all clinical trial regulation, including a re-examination of this proposal to ensure that it can be justified. That re-examination is ongoing.
	(1 )The Medicines for Human Use (Clinical Trials) Regulations 2004 [SI 20004/1031].

Clostridium Difficile

Ann Widdecombe: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many deaths have been caused by the bacterium Clostridium difficile in  (a) Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS and  (b) England in the last three years; and what guidance her Department has issued to (i) hospitals and (ii) primary care trusts on preventing such deaths.

Andy Burnham: The data requested is not available centrally. The Office for National Statistics published figures on the number of deaths where Clostridium difficile was mentioned on the death certificate from 1999 to 2004 in Health Statistics Quarterly 30 in May 2006. The number of deaths where Clostridium difficile was mentioned on the death certificate and the number where it was also the underlying cause of death are given in the following table. The full paper is available at www.statistics.gov.uk/downloads/theme_health/HS0 30.pdf. A copy has been placed in the Library.
	
		
			  Number of death certificates with Clostridium difficile mentioned and as the underlying cause, England, 2002-04 
			   Mentioned  Underlying cause 
			 2002 1,338 709 
			 2003 1,702 912 
			 2004 2,155 1,187 
		
	
	A joint professional letter from the Chief Medical Officer and the Chief Nursing Officer went out to NHS trusts in December 2005 to remind them of the importance of this infection. This letter listed the key actions to control Clostridium difficle and highlighted the guidance available.(1,2) The letter is available at www.dh.gov.uk/assetroot/04/12/55/23/04125523.pdf. A copy has been placed in the Library.
	As part of our delivery programme Saving lives: a delivery programme to reduce healthcare associated infections including MRSA a high impact intervention which is a tool to help reduce Clostridium difficile infections was published in June 2006.
	A simple guide to Clostridium difficile is also available on the Department's website at www.dh.gov.uk/assetroot/04/ll/58/84/04115884.pdf. A copy has been placed in the Library.
	(1) Clostridium Difficile Infection, Prevention and Management A Report by a Department of Health/PHLS joint working group. 1994
	(2) Guidelines for optimal surveillance of Clostridium difficile infection in hospitals Brazier JS and Duerden BI. Guidelines for optimal surveillance of Clostridium difficile infection in hospitals. Comm.Dis.Pub.Health. 1998:1;(4) 229-230.

Contraception

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what types of contraceptive are available to  (a) men and  (b) women through family planning clinics; what the price of each item is; and what the cost of providing each contraceptive free-of-charge was in the last year for which figures are available.

Caroline Flint: The type of contraceptives available to men and women through community contraceptive services are shown in the following list. However, availability will vary between clinics.
	 Available contraception at family planning clinics
	 Available to men
	Male condoms
	Vasectomy (referral)
	Contraception advice
	 Available to women
	Oral contraceptive methods (pill)
	Intrauterine devices (IUD)
	Intrauterine system (IUS)
	Implants
	Intertable contraceptives
	Male and female condoms (femidoms)
	Female sterilisation (referral)
	Contraception patch
	Cap/diaphragm
	Other chemicals/spermacides
	Natural family planning awareness
	The price of each item is available from the British National Formulary (BNF) which is available on their website at www.bnf.org
	The cost of providing each contraceptive free-of-charge via community contraceptive (family planning) clinics is not collected centrally.

Diet

Shailesh Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what discussions the Government has had on plans to promote healthy eating; and with whom.

Caroline Flint: As part of the obesity prevention programme, the Government have a well-developed stakeholder engagement process to promote healthy eating. The Department has been working closely with a development group of about 40 stakeholders drawn from the non government organisations, physical activity, food manufacturing and food retailing sectors. The group also includes the frontline services within the national health service, local government, Department for Culture, Media and Sports, Department for Education and Skills, Department for Transport and Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. The work of the Department is well informed by an expert review group of leading experts from the fields of behavioural psychology, nutrition and physical activity.

Fertility Services

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent assessment she has made of fertility services in Shropshire.

Caroline Flint: NHS West Midlands reports that both Shropshire county primary care trust (PCT) and Telford and Wrekin PCT provide two cycles of in vitro fertilisation treatment to couples in which the woman is aged 37.5 or under at the time of treatment. Their policy on eligibility for treatment was determined before the publication of the clinical guideline on the assessment and treatment for people with fertility problems produced by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE).
	The PCTs are currently reviewing their policies against the NICE guidelines and a paper will be produced for consideration by the respective boards in the autumn.

Healthcare-acquired Infections

Shailesh Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many hospital patients have  (a) contracted and  (b) died from exposure to healthcare-acquired infections in the constituency of North West Cambridgeshire since 1997.

Andy Burnham: holding answer 5 July 2006
	The information requested is not available in the format requested. However, data for meticillin resistant  Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) blood stream infections, Clostridium difficile reports and glycopeptide resistant enterococci (GRE) blood stream infections have been set out in the following tables.
	
		
			  Meticillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus 
			   Number of MRSA bacteraemias 
			   April to March each year: 
			  Trusts in North West Cambridgeshire constituency  2001-02  2002-03  2003-04  2004-05 
			 Hinchingbrooke Healthcare NHS Trust 12 25 26 12 
			 Peterborough and Stamford Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 12 10 10 16 
		
	
	
		
			  Clostridium difficile reports and glycopeptide resistant enterococci (GRE) blood stream infections 
			  Trusts in North West Cambridgeshire constituency  Number of Clostridium difficile reports for patients 65 and over January 2004 to December 2004  Number of Glycopeptide resistant enterococci (GRE) blood stream infections reports October 2003 to September 2004 
			 Hinchingbrooke Healthcare NHS Trust 73 1 
			 Peterborough and Stamford Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust 166 0 
			  Notes:Information on deaths due to hospital acquired infections is not available. The Office for National Statistics publishes statistics on deaths with Clostridium difficile(1) or MRSA(2) mentioned on the death certificate. However, no information is available on where these infections were acquired either in terms of hospital or community acquisition or of strategic health authority.(1) Deaths involving Clostridium difficile: England and Wales, 1999 to 2004 Health Statistics Quarterly 30, summer 2006, pp56-60(2) Deaths involving MRSA: England and Wales, 2000 to 2004 Health Statistics Quarterly 29, spring 2006, pp63-8. Source: Health Protection Agency

Healthcare-acquired Infections

Shailesh Vara: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many hospital patients have  (a) contracted and  (b) died from exposure to MRSA or similar infections in each year since 1997.

Andy Burnham: holding answer 5 July 2006
	The information requested is not available. The best available information is from the mandatory surveillance system which provides data on the number of reports of meticillin resistant  Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) blood stream infections from April 2001 to 30 September 2005 as shown in the table. Figures from October 2005 to March 2006 will be published later this month.
	
		
			  MRSA blood stream infections in England from 1 April 2001 to 30 September 2005 
			  Period  Number of MRS  bloodstream infections 
			 1 April 2001 to 30 March 2002 7,281 
			 1 April 2002 to 30 March 2003 7,390 
			 1 April 2003 to 30 March 2004 7,705 
			 1 April 2004 to 30 March 2005 7,214 
			 1 April 2005 to 30 September 2005 3,580 
			  Source: Health Protection Agency 
		
	
	The total number of reports of Clostridium difficile associated disease in England between January and December 2004 was 44,350 and the total number of reports of clinically significant glycopeptide resistant enterococci (GRE) blood stream infections in England from October 2003 to September 2004 was 620.
	A national prevalence survey of hospital acquired infection was carried out this spring and interim results will be published in the autumn.
	Information on deaths due to hospital acquired infections is not available. The Office for National Statistics publish statistics on deaths with  Clostridium difficile(1) or MRSA(2) mentioned on the death certificate. However, no information is available on where these infections were acquired, either in terms of hospital or community acquisition or of strategic health authority.
	(1) Deaths involving Clostridium difficile. England and Wales, 1999 to 2004 Health Statistics Quarterly 30, summer 2006, pp56-60
	(2 )Deaths involving MRSA: England and Wales, 2000 to 2004 Health Statistics Quarterly 29, spring 2006, pp63-8.

Human Pappiloma Virus Vaccine

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health whether the human pappilloma virus vaccines will be considered at the meeting of the joint council on vaccination and immunisation in February 2007.

Caroline Flint: A joint committee on vaccination and immunisation (JCVI) subgroup met in May 2006 to review all available information on human pappilloma virus vaccines and will hold further meetings during 2006, reporting to the main JCVI committee once they have all the relevant information.

Human Pappiloma Virus Vaccine

Sandra Gidley: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what progress the Government have made on its plans to introduce the human pappilloma virus vaccine; and if she will make a statement.

Caroline Flint: The joint committee on vaccination and immunisation (JCVI) subgroup met in May 2006 to review all the available information on human pappilloma virus (HPV) vaccines and will hold further meetings during 2006. Implementation plans will be based on the advice of JCVI as to the most effective immunisation schedule should HPV vaccine be judged to be beneficial.

NHS Professionals

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans she has to change the structure of NHS Professionals.

Rosie Winterton: The future organisational form of NHS Professionals is yet to be determined. My officials are working with NHS Professionals on their future structure.

NHS Professionals

John Baron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the set-up costs were of NHS Professionals; and what the annual running costs have been in each year since its establishment.

Rosie Winterton: The Government initially invested 7 million in the pilot sites of St. Mary's National Health Service Trust, Paddington; Barking, Havering and Redbridge NHS Trust; West Yorkshire Metropolitan Ambulance Service; John Radcliffe Hospital NHS Trust; East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust; North Bristol NHS Trust in 2001-02 and a further 24 million to roll out operations more widely in 2002-03. NHS Professionals became a special health authority on 1 January 2004 and details of its running costs are available in their annual accounts which are available in the Library.

Nurse Training

Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Health 
	(1)  what recent assessment she has made of the syllabus for nurse training; and if she will make a statement;
	(2)  whether there is a Preliminary Training School Module in nurse training;
	(3)  in what module of nurse training discipline and courtesy is taught.

Andy Burnham: holding answer 6 July 2006
	The Department is not responsible for setting curricula for nurse training. The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) sets the standards for registration as a qualified nurse or midwife. The education standards set by the NMC are at a broad level of principle and are used by higher education institutions to inform their curriculum development. The NMC closely monitors the standards of pre-registration education and quality assure courses, to ensure that they are teaching the required skills and knowledge to the right standard. This includes the development of communication skills, both with patients and with other members of the health care team.

Palliative Care for the Terminally Ill

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent representations she has received about the Palliative Care for the Terminally Ill Bill; how many  (a) supported and  (b) opposed the Bill; and if she will make a statement.

Rosie Winterton: We have received 20 letters concerning the Palliative Care for the Terminally Ill Bill forwarded by hon. Members on behalf of constituents and one from a member of the public directly. All of these were supportive of the Bill.
	The Government are still considering the Bill, and will make its position known in due course.

Performance Management

Julia Goldsworthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what measures her Department has introduced to improve performance management and local delivery monitoring.

Andy Burnham: The Department has an established system of local delivery planning over the past decade that establishes trajectories for delivery of the key national targets set out in the planning and priorities framework 'National Standards, Local Action' (2005).
	To support this monthly and quarterly returns from the national health service are collected which report local progress against these plans. Under the performance regime established in 'Shifting the Balance of Power' (2001) and 'The NHS Improvement Plan' (2004), the Department performance manages strategic health authorities (SHAs) and SHAs performance manages delivery by NHS trusts and primary care trusts.
	The monthly and quarterly returns are routinely revised to ensure that the data tracks the most significant issues that drive delivery.
	'Health Reform in England' (2005) signals developments in the performance regime over the next few years, especially an emphasis on early warning of potential poor performance.

Reproductive Health

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many representations she has received about (a) death and  (b) disability resulting from the contraceptive pill in the last 12 months; and if she will make a statement.

Andy Burnham: In the last year, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), which is the Government agency responsible for evaluating the safety, quality and efficacy of all licensed medicines, has received eight reports of suspected adverse drug reactions (ADRs) in association with the use of a contraceptive pill that were considered to be disabling or incapacitating by the reporter.
	The reporting of a suspected adverse reaction does not necessarily mean that the drug was responsible. It is possible that, in some cases, a new or underlying medical condition or concomitant medication may have been responsible. In two of these cases, (an)other medicine/medicines were also considered to be causally related to the reaction by the reporter. Furthermore, the coincidental occurrence of some adverse events in women taking hormonal contraceptives is inevitable given their widespread use.
	Regarding the number of suspected reactions with a fatal outcome that have been reported, the MHRA is unable to release information when it relates to five or fewer cases of any suspected ADRs in order to prevent identification of the patients or the reporter. For this reason we are unable to disclose the exact number of reported cases.

Turnaround Teams

Graham Stuart: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how much has been paid by  (a) Yorkshire Wolds and Coast primary care trust and  (b) other PCTs in turnaround to (i) Ernst and Young and(ii) other companies assisting with turnaround.

Andy Burnham: This information is being collected for the Health Select Committee and is not yet ready for release.

Vaccine Damage Payments

Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Health how many vaccine damage payments were made in respect of the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine in each of the last five years; and what proportion this represents of  (a) all vaccine damage payments and  (b) all doses of measles, mumps and rubella.

Anne McGuire: I have been asked to reply.
	The Vaccine Damage Payments Unit (VDPU) do not hold information about specific vaccinations linked to successful claims. Claimants are asked to specify on the claim form all the vaccinations that the disabled person has received, not just the vaccine that is claimed to have caused the disablement. As a number of vaccinations are often given in close proximity, often on the same day, it is not always possible to state categorically which has caused the adverse reaction. It is therefore not possible to state how many vaccine damage payments have been made in respect of the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine.
	 (a) The VDPU do however record details of all the vaccinations noted on the claim form and out of24 successful awards in the last five years, there have been two where the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine was among those listed on the claim form.
	 (b) If those two claims were awarded in respect of the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine this would represent one per 4.3 million doses of the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine.

Waiting Times

Annette Brooke: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average waiting time was for functional electrical stimulation treatment in  (a) England and  (b) Dorset in the last year for which figures are available.

Andy Burnham: The official figures on waiting times show the length of time that people currently on the list for treatment have been waiting. This data is collected at consultant-led speciality level, for example neurology and clinical neuro-physiology. It is not possible to split this data down to show waiting list data for specific operations and treatments such as functional electrical stimulation.

Air Passenger Duty

Vincent Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the case for  (a) changes in the basis of air passenger duty from payment per passenger to payment per flight and  (b) relating the level of such payments to the amount of carbon dioxide and other pollutants produced during the flight; and if he will make a statement.

John Healey: A discussion paper published jointly by Her Majesty's Treasury and the Department for Transport in March 2003, entitled Aviation and the Environment: Using Economic Instruments, considered the role of economic instruments and the environmental costs of aviation. This was also considered in the Air Transport White Paper, The Future of Air Transport, published on 16 December 2003 and in chapter 5 of Aviation and Global Warming, published by the Department for Transport on 10 February 2004.
	The Air Transport White Paper set out the conclusions of the Government's analysis, including our view that aviation should be brought within the EU Emissions Trading Scheme by 2008, as the most effective way of tackling the climate change impact. Along with other measures to tackle local environmental impacts, this will help to ensure that the air transport sector meets its environmental costs.
	In the Financial Statement and Budget Report 2006 the Government stated that:
	the Government is aware that economic instruments, including APD, may provide a route through which improved environmental performance in the aviation sector can be incentivised and so will continue to explore options for developing further such measures.

Air Passenger Duty

Vincent Cable: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer for what reason transit flights are exempt from air passenger duty; and what estimate he has made of how much extra revenue would be raised per annum were such flights subject to this duty.

John Healey: Not all transit flights are exempt from air passenger duty and in order to qualify specific criteria must be met. These are set out in Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs' Public Notice 550, which gives details of the specific requirements of the exemption criteria. This notice can be obtained from the Revenue and Customs website at:
	www.hmrc.gov.uk
	Exempting connecting flights ensures that passengers are not taxed twice for a journey when making a connecting flight within the UK, or that if they are entering the UK in transit to an end destination outside the UK they are not taxed merely for the short stopover in the UK that is necessary to catch a connecting flight.
	HMRC do not collect data on the number of transit passengers that pass through UK airports, and therefore we have not made any analysis on the extra revenue that charging APD on these passengers would raise.

Arms Imports

Nick Harvey: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 13 June 2006,  Official Report, column 5767W, on AK-47s, what UK custom entry clearance has been issued to UK based companies for the importation of pallets of small arms from Bosnia since June 2003.

Dawn Primarolo: Since June 2003 UK Customs have issued no entry clearances to UK companies in respect of items, which might be classed as small arms under Commodity Code 9302 or 9304.

Bank Notes

David Amess: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the expected period of use is of the  (a) 5,  (b) 10,  (c) 20 and  (d) 50 note.

Edward Balls: I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer given by the then Financial Secretary the hon. Member for East Ham (Mr. Timms) to the hon. Member for Pendle (Mr. Prentice) on 14 March 2005,  Official Report, column 84W.

Barker Review

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when he expects the Barker Review of land use planning policy to report.

John Healey: The interim report of the Barker Review of Land Use Planning was published on 4 July 2006. The final report is due later in 2006.

Child Tax Credits

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the impact of child tax credits on child poverty since 1997; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: Between 1998-99 and 2004-05, 700,000 children have been lifted out of relative poverty. Macroeconomic stability, active labour market policies such as the new deal, policies to make work pay such as the, working tax credit, and financial support for families, including the child tax credit, have all contributed to this success.
	Since 2002-03, the last year before child tax credit and working tax credit were introduced, 200,000 children have been lifted out of relative poverty.
	As a result of the Government's reforms to the tax and benefit system since 1997, by October 2006, in real terms, families with children will be, on average, 1,500 a year better off, while those in the poorest fifth will be, on average, 3,400 per year better off.

Civil Service, Wales

Albert Owen: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what measures he plans to take to ensure that civil service job cuts in Wales do not adversely affect economic regeneration of Objective 1 areas.

Stephen Timms: The Government are committed to strengthening the Welsh economy and regenerating Objective 1 areas.
	Following Sir Michael Lyons Independent Review of Public Sector Relocation the Government undertook to relocate 20,000 posts out of London and the South East by 2010. By April 2006 7,800 posts had moved to every country and region in the UK, including more than 1,600 to Wales.
	Since 1997 employment in Wales has increased by more than 10 per cent., with an additional 123,000 jobs created.
	In order to target resources into improving key front-line services, the Government are committed to reducing the number of civil servants engaged in non-frontline functions by 70,600 (net) by 2008. Departments are responsible for implementing their work force targets and HM Treasury does not hold data showing the location of each affected site.
	Regeneration spending, including the Objective 1 programme, is a devolved matter for the Welsh Assembly Government.

Correspondence

David Amess: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer pursuant to the answer of 28 June 2006,  Official Report, column 410W, on correspondence, what estimate he has made of the cost of answering the question; and if he will make a statement.

John Healey: It is not possible to identify separately the average cost of officials' time in replying to letters from hon. Members and members of the public. Such correspondence is often of a varied and complex nature. Therefore any exercise to determine the average cost in officials' time in responding to letters would incur disproportionate cost.
	It is not possible to identify separately stationery and postage costs for the department when replying to correspondence from hon. Members and members of the public.

Correspondence

David Winnick: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when the Chairman of HM Revenue and Customs will reply to the letter from the hon. Member for Walsall North of 18 May regarding a constituent; and what the reason is for the delay in replying.

Dawn Primarolo: I understand that HMRC wrote to the hon. Member on 6 July and that they will be writing again very shortly.

Correspondence

David Winnick: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer when the Tax Credit Office will reply to the letter from the hon. Member for Walsall North of23 May; ref: 2006-05 008197.

Dawn Primarolo: The Tax Credit Office replied to the hon. Member on 6 July.

Double Taxation Agreements

Quentin Davies: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many requests from overseas tax authorities HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has received in the past three years pursuant to the operation of actual assistance provisions of UK double taxation agreements; from which countries these requests have been received; what amount of tax was claimed in each case; and what checks HMRC applied in pursuance of provisions corresponding to  (a) Article 27 para 2 and  (b) other articles of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Mutual Convention to satisfy itself that the tax they were asked to collect was properly due and payable.

Dawn Primarolo: At present the UK has no provisions in any of its Double Taxation Agreements that correspond to Article 27 of the OECD Model Convention nor has it ratified the Council of Europe/OECD Convention on Mutual Administrative Assistance in Tax Matters.

Draft Bills

David Amess: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what draft Bills have been produced by his Department since October 2005; how many were  (a) examined and  (b) are planned to be examined by (i) a departmental Select Committee and (ii) a Joint Committee; what draft Bills are still to be produced by his Department; when each is to be published; how many clauses each has; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what his practice is regarding meeting, discussing and taking into account the views and opinions of  (a) private individuals and  (b) representatives of organisations when drawing up and framing legislation to be introduced by his Department; and if he will make a statement.

John Healey: The Treasury has not introduced any Bills in draft in the period covered by the hon. Member's question. Announcements on future legislation and future draft legislation that will be subject to pre-legislative scrutiny will be indicated in the Queen's Speech.
	The Treasury seeks a full range of views when drawing up and framing legislation. Consultation is a key part of the policy making process, both formal and informal. The Treasury holds regular meetings with representatives of the principal stakeholder groups for our policy areas and with relevant experts. Organisations and individuals can also contribute to the Treasury's formal consultations that abide by the Code of Conduct on Consultation. As required by the code, the Department then gives feedback on the responses received and on how the consultation process influenced the policy decision.

Education Capital Projects

Barry Sheerman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  which education capital projects are VAT exempt;
	(2)  what criteria are used to decide what type of education capital projects are VAT exempt;
	(3)  what representations he has received from the further education sector about the VAT status of further education capital projects;
	(4)  what assessment his Department has made of the impact of VAT on further education capital projects;
	(5)  if he will take steps to ensure that further education and schools capital projects receive the same treatment.

Dawn Primarolo: VAT is chargeable on the construction of all buildings in the education sector, except those that will be used at least 90 per cent. for a relevant charitable purpose, such as the provision of free of charge education by a charity. In such cases, construction of the building is VAT zero-rated. VAT agreements with our European partners mean that while we can maintain this relief for the construction of charitable buildings, it cannot be extended further.
	However, where VAT is chargeable on capital projects, this can be reclaimed from HMRC to the extent that it relates to taxable business use of the facilities. In addition, local authorities can usually reclaim from HMRC all VAT costs relating to the educational institutions that they maintain.
	Refund arrangements for local authorities reflect a commitment, made when VAT was first introduced, that VAT would not fall as a burden on local taxation. Accordingly, since 1997, bodies have only been admitted to these refund arrangements where they undertake a function ordinarily carried on by local government and have the power to draw their funding directly from local taxation. Unlike local authority maintained institutions, Further Education Colleges do not meet the second of these conditions.
	It is reasonable to expect that bids for public funding by Further Education Colleges should take into account that they are not eligible for the VAT refund arrangements that apply for local authority maintained institutions. However, no detailed assessment has been made of the impact of VAT on further education capital projects.
	Representations are regularly made to Treasury Ministers by MPs and stakeholders on a wide range of issues, including VAT and extended use of educational facilities.

Financial Capability

David Drew: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer which citizens advice bureaux are working in partnership with the personal finance education group on financial capability in schools; and what plans he has to expand this project.

Edward Balls: I welcome the excellent work that citizens advice bureaux are doing with pfeg to improve the financial capability of students in schools, including the successful pilot they ran with independent financial advisers as part of the FSA led National Strategy for Financial Capability. In addition, I welcome the involvement of citizens advice bureaux in the 45 million Financial Inclusion Fund project to deliver a significant increase in the capacity of free face-to-face debt advice for the financially excluded. I look forward to the outcome of these important projects with interest.

Financial Support (Pregnancy)

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what assessment he has made of the merits of providing financial assistance to low-income families during pregnancy; and whether there are any plans to provide any such financial support.

Dawn Primarolo: Statutory maternity pay, maternity allowance and the Sure Start maternity grant provide financial support for low-income families during pregnancy. Statutory maternity pay and maternity allowance are worth 108.85 a week for up to 26 weeks, and may be taken from 11 weeks prior to the birth of the child. The Sure Start maternity grant is worth500 per baby and may be claimed from the 29th week of pregnancy. The Government also run the welfare food scheme, which provides free milk, infant formula and vitamins to pregnant women on low incomes.

Health Statistics

Richard Spring: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the rate was of  (a) cancers and  (b) stroke in West Suffolk in each of the past five years.

John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician who has been asked to reply.
	 Letter from Colin Mowl, dated 10 July 2006:
	The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your recent Parliamentary Question asking what the rate was of  (a) cancers and  (b) stroke in West Suffolk in each of the past five years. I am replying in her absence.
	 A: Cancersincidence
	The latest available rates for newly diagnosed cases of cancer (incidence) are for the year 2003. Incidence rates are not available centrally for parliamentary constituencies. Cancer incidence rates for all malignant cancers excluding non-melanoma skin cancer for the years 1999-2003 are given in Table 1 below for the Forest Heath and St. Edmundsbury local authorities.
	 B: Strokeincidence
	There is no complete register of stroke cases. Information is available centrally on emergency admission to hospital from the NHS Hospital Episode System (HES), and on death registrations.
	Figures on emergency admissions to hospital for strokes can be found on the Clinical and Health Outcomes Knowledge Base website: http://www.nchod.nhs.uk/. (Table reference numbers: 10C_5281SR7CM_04-V2 (males) 10C_5281SR7CF_04-V2 (females)). Figures are available for England, Government Office Regions, Strategic Health Authorities, Local Authorities and Primary Care Organisations. The latest year for which data are available is for the financial year 2003/04.
	 C: Cancers and Strokemortality
	Mortality rates for parliamentary constituencies cannot be provided because population estimates are not available for these areas. Figures in Table 2 below are provided for the local authorities making up the requested constituency. The figures for 2000 have been adjusted to take account of revisions to the International Classification of Diseases where appropriate.
	The introduction of ICD-10 for coding cause of death in England and Wales in 2001 means that data for cancer are not completely comparable with data for years before this date. The effect of the change in classification in 2001 on deaths from these causes is described in a report published in May 2002: Office for National Statistics. Results of the ICD-10 bridge coding study, England and Wales, 1999. Health Statistics Quarterly 14 (2002), 75-83.
	For cancer (malignant neoplasms) the introduction of ICD-10 caused an increase of 2.3 per cent. in the number of deaths coded to these conditions in England and Wales. Deaths in 2000 from these causes have been adjusted to provide rates which are comparable with those for 2001-2004.
	The local authority of Forest Heath falls wholly within West Suffolk parliamentary constituency. The local authority ofSt. Edmundsbury comprises parts of West Suffolk, South Suffolk and Bury St. Edmunds parliamentary constituencies.
	
		
			  Table 1: Incidence rates( 1)  per million population for all malignant cancers( 2) , by sex, registered in the local authorities of Forest Heath and St. Edmundsbury, 1999-2003 
			   All cancers excluding nmsc 
			   Male  Female 
			 1999 3,849 3,671 
			 2000 3,611 3,432 
			 2001 3,706 3,295 
			 2002 4,040 3,500 
			 2003 4,430 3,495 
			 (1) Rates per million population standardised to the European Standard Population.(2) All malignant cancers are defined by codes C00-C97 excluding non-melanoma skin cancer (nmsc) code C44 in the International Classification of Diseases, Tenth Revision (ICD 10). Source: Office for National Statistics. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Death rates( 1)  for cancer and stroke( 2)  for the local authorities of Forest Heath and St. Edmundsbury( 3) , 2001-04 
			   Death rates cancer  Death rates stroke 
			   Forest Heath  St. Edmundsbury  Forest Heath  St. Edmundsbury 
			 2000 1,961 1,590 510 601 
			 2001 1,447 1,723 767 679 
			 2002 2,145 1,676 610 664 
			 2003 2,095 1,845 560 553 
			 2004 1,609 1,815 541 464 
			 (1) Rates per 1,000,000 population standardised to the European Standard Population.(2) The cause of death was defined using the International Classification of Diseases, Ninth Revision (ICD-9), 2000 and Tenth Revision (ICD-10), 2001-2004. The codes used are: Cancer ICD9 140-208, ICD10 C00-C97 and Stroke ICD9 430-438, ICD10 160-169. Deaths were selected using the original underlying cause.(3) Usual residents of this area.(4) Deaths registered in each calendar year..

Health Statistics

Joan Walley: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the most recent infant mortality rate was in  (a) Stoke-on-Trent,  (b) the West Midlands and  (c) England.

John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the national statistician, who has been asked to reply.
	 Letter from Colin Mowl, dated 10 June 2006:
	The National Statistician has been asked to reply to your recent question asking what the most recent infant mortality rate was in (a) Stoke-on-Trent, (b) the West Midlands and (c) England. I am replying in her absence. (80606)
	The table below gives the infant mortality rate for the most recent year available.
	
		
			  Infant mortality rate( 1) , Stoke-on-Trent, West Midlands and England, 2004 
			   Rate 
			 Stoke-on-Trent 7.7 
			 West Midlands 6.3 
			 England 5.0 
			 (1) Rate per 1,000 live births.

HM Customs and Excise

Mark Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many officials were employed by HM Customs and Excise in each year since 1997; and how many were front-line staff in each year.

Dawn Primarolo: The following table shows the full-time equivalent numbers of staff employed by HM Customs and Excise at 1 April 1997 to 1 April 2005, split between those in front-line work (i.e. dealing with traders and customers) and those in support and policy work.
	
		
			  Year at 1 April  Front line  Support and policy  Total 
			 1997 19,236 4,256 23,492 
			 1998 19,476 4,240 23,716 
			 1999 18,704 4,171 22,875 
			 2000 18,659 3,933 22,595 
			 2001 18,723 3,822 22,545 
			 2002 18,408 3,877 22,285 
			 2003 18,042 4,497 22,539 
			 2004 18,591 4,392 22,983 
			 2005 19,219 4,138 23,353

HM Revenue and Customs Offices

David Laws: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the latest estimate is of the number of open cases at each HM Revenue and Customs office in each month since January 2005; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: HMRC do not have records of open cases at the level of each local HMRC office.

HM Revenue and Customs Offices

David Amess: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people HM Revenue and Customs employs in collecting taxes; how many there were  (a) 5,  (b) 10 and  (c) 20 years ago; what his estimate is of the cost of tax collection in 2006-07; and what it was (i) 5, (ii) 10 and (iii) 20 years ago.

Dawn Primarolo: The average number of HM Revenue and Customs staff employed in collecting taxes in 2005-06 was 93,574.
	HM Revenue and Customs estimate for 2006-07 anticipates the cost of collecting taxes in that financial year to be 4,122 million.
	The number of staff involved in collected taxes and the associated costs for 5, 10 and 20 years ago can be obtained from the annual reports of HM Customs and Excise and HM Inland Revenue for the financial years 1985-86, 1995-96 and 2000-01. These publications: Command Documents 9831, 5, 230, 3427, 3446, 5304 and 5309 can be obtained from the Library of the House.

Income Statistics (West Lancashire)

Rosie Cooper: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what the income per head was in West Lancashire constituency in each of the last five years.

Dawn Primarolo: The latest estimates for the mean and median of total income (for taxpayers only) by constituency can be found in table 3.15 Income and tax by Parliamentary Constituency on HM Revenue and Customs website http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/income_distribution/menu-by-year.htm#315.
	The information is based on the latest Surveys of Personal Incomes (2003-04 and 2003-04).
	Because sample sizes at constituency level are small and estimates can demonstrate a large variability from year to year, inference from the information in the table for 2003-04 should take into account the confidence intervals in table 3.15a Income and tax by Parliamentary Constituency, Confidence Intervals.
	Similar information including non-taxpayers is not available.

Incomes (Tax Allowances)

David Amess: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what the loss of revenue to the Exchequer would be if allowances against tax on incomes were raised by (a) 50,  (b) 100,  (c) 150,  (d) 200,  (e) 250 and (f) 300;
	(2)  what increase in tax revenue would follow from raising the standard rate of income tax by  (a) two pence and  (b) six pence at current levels of income and with no changes in the income tax allowances and rates.

Dawn Primarolo: The information requested can be calculated from the figures shown in table 1.6 Direct effects of illustrative tax changes on HM Revenue and Customs website at:
	http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/stats/tax_expenditures/menu.htm.
	The cost of changing the personal allowance or the basic income tax rate is proportional to the changes to allowances and rates provided in the table.

Judicial Review

David Amess: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer on what occasions an  (a) individual and  (b) organisation has applied for a judicial review against his Department in each year since 1997; and what the (i) reason for the review and (ii) outcome was of each.

John Healey: Our records show that the number of occasions on which persons have written a letter before action or instituted a claim for judicial review against HM Treasury have been one each in 1997 and 1998, three in 1999, 0 in 2000, five in 2001, 0 in 2002, two in 2003, one in 2004 and four in 2005.
	There were three applications for judicial review in 2005. Two of these were unsuccessful at permission stage and the other one was withdrawn on the basis of a settlement agreed between the parties. The former cases concerned the award of a waste management contract and a refusal to permit the payment of taxes into a separate fund out of which military expenditure is not paid. The latter case concerned the Operating and Financial Review for public companies. It is not possible to provide similar information for cases in earlier years without incurring disproportionate cost.
	The Treasury have been involved in other litigation since 1997 in addition to the cases mentioned but it is not possible to distinguish those further cases which were judicial reviews without incurring disproportionate cost.

Named Day Questions

James Brokenshire: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer  (a how many named day written parliamentary questions his Department received in each of the last three years;  (b) what percentage of named day written parliamentary questions his Department answered within the requested time limit; and  (c) what the average delay was for those questions which were not answered within the requested time limit.

John Healey: Information in respect of  (a) and  (b) for the 2003-04, 2004-05 and 2005-06 sessions is given in the following table:
	
		
			  Session  Questions tabled  Percentage answered on the named day 
			 2003-04 518 74.7 
			 2004-05 287 79.4 
			 2005-06 762 72.6 
		
	
	The information sought at  (c) could only be calculated and related to the pattern of sittings of the House of Commons at disproportionate cost.

National Insurance Contributions

Mark Hoban: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people his Department calculated as being liable for payment of national insurance contributions in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement.

Dawn Primarolo: Information on the estimated number of individuals making national insurance contributions is shown in Table CQY 1.0 on the Department for Work and Pensions' internet website http://www.dwp.gov.uk/asd/asd1/dsu/contsandqualify/Conts_and_Qual_Years_tables05.xls

Pensions

Lynne Jones: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what annual savings to 2012 he estimates would be made if the lifetime allowance for tax privileged pension savings was frozen at 1.5 million.

Edward Balls: As announced in Budget 2004 the lifetime allowance (LTA) on the amount of pension saving that can benefit from tax relief has been set for years to and including financial year 2010-11.
	The revenue yield is very difficult to estimate and the figures provided are consequently uncertain. In particular there are consequences for transitional protection arrangements and scope for behavioural change. The estimate is based on the number of individuals constrained in their contributions to pension saving by the LTA.
	If the LTA were fixed at 1.5 million for a further five years until 6 April 2012, we estimate reduced pension contributions would yield additional income tax of around 150 million, aggregated over five years. This estimate takes into account the estimated reduction in tax yields as a result of reduced pensions in payment these contributions would otherwise have funded.

Personal Finance Education

David Drew: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how the Treasury, the Financial Services Authority and the Department for Education and Skills will measure the effectiveness of personal finance education being introduced into the school curriculum.

Edward Balls: The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority will monitor the effectiveness of personal finance education in the curriculum to ensure it remains current and appropriate for the needs of individuals and the nation. The FSA recently conducted a benchmark survey measuring the extent to which personal finance education is being taught in schools and the confidence of teachers in delivering it. This survey will be repeated every4-5 years.

Population Statistics

David Simpson: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what percentage of the population of  (a) the UK and  (b) each region of the UK is (i) under 25, (ii) between 25 and 34, (iii) between 35 and 44, (iv) between 45 and 54, (v) between 55 and 64 and (vi) over 65 years of age.

John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician who has been asked to reply.
	 Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated 10 July 2006:
	As National Statistician, I have been asked to reply to your question about what percentage of the population of (a) the UK and (b) each region of the UK is (i) under 25, (ii) between 25 and 34, (iii) between 35 and 44, (iv) between 45 and 54, (v) between55 and 64 and (vi) over 65 years of age. (82922)
	The latest available data, for mid-2004, are shown in the attached table.
	
		
			  Mid-2004 Population Estimates: Population, percentage in selected age groups, by countries and Government office regions (GOR) within the United Kingdom 
			   Percentage of the population who are aged: 
			 Country /GOR  Under 25  25-34  35-44  45-54  55-64  65 and over 
			 United Kingdom 31 13 15 13 12 16 
			
			 England 31 13 15 13 12 16 
			 North East 31 12 15 14 12 17 
			 North West 32 13 15 13 12 16 
			 Yorkshire and the Humber 32 12 15 13 12 16 
			 East Midlands 31 12 15 13 12 16 
			 West Midlands 32 13 15 13 12 16 
			 East 30 13 15 13 12 17 
			 London 32 20 17 11 9 12 
			 South East 31 13 16 13 12 17 
			 South West 29 12 15 13 13 19 
			
			 Wales 31 12 14 13 13 18 
			
			 Scotland 30 13 16 14 12 16 
			
			 Northern Ireland 36 13 15 12 10 14 
			  Note:Percentages may not add due to rounding. Source:Office for National Statistics

Poverty, Chester

Christine Russell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what steps he has taken to reduce poverty in the City of Chester since 1997.

Dawn Primarolo: The Treasury has, in partnership with other Government Departments, tackled poverty and promoted economic opportunity through:
	Promoting macro-economic stability
	Supporting work for those who can and ensuring that work pays, through the new deals, a national minimum wage and the working tax credit
	Providing financial support for groups at particular risk of poverty, such as child Benefit and the child tax for families, and the pension credit for pensioners.
	Across the UK, these measures have helped lift more than a million people out of poverty since 1997. Tax credits are benefiting more than 550,000 families in the North West region, and in the City of Chester, claimant unemployment has fallen by 48 per cent. youth unemployment has fallen by 63 per cent. and long-term unemployment has fallen by 85 per cent.

Suicide

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many people committed suicide ineach of the last five years, broken down by  (a) age and  (b) ethnic origin, in each (i) London borough and(ii) constituency; and if he will make a statement.

John Healey: The information requested falls within the responsibility of the National Statistician who has been asked to reply.
	 Letter from Karen Dunnell, dated 10 July 2006:
	As National Statistician I have been asked to reply to your recent question asking how many people committed suicide, broken down by  (a) age and  (b) ethnic origin, in each of the last five years in each (i) London Borough and (ii) national constituency. (82959)
	Although information on country of birth is collected at death registration, ethnicity is not collected.
	The most recent year for which figures are available is 2005. A table which shows the number of deaths with an underlying cause of suicide or injury/poisoning of undetermined intent by age group for each parliamentary constituency in England and Wales and for each London Borough for the years 2001 to 2005 has been placed in the House of Commons library.

Tobacco

Eric Illsley: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer 
	(1)  what recent discussions his Department has had with the tobacco industry on introducing an anti-counterfeiting labelling scheme for tobacco products;
	(2)  if he will bring forward proposals for introducing an anti-counterfeiting scheme for tobacco products in the UK;
	(3)  to what extent he has examined technological solutions which other countries are using to tackle the trade in counterfeit tobacco.

John Healey: In a paper published at the 2006 BudgetNew Responses to New Challenges: Reinforcing the Tackling Tobacco Smuggling Strategywe announced that Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs (HMRC) and the tobacco manufacturers would jointly be examining a range of practical measures that could be implemented against counterfeit cigarettes, such as covert markings. HMRC and the largest UK tobacco manufacturers have established a joint working group to identify the best means of detecting counterfeit tobacco products and preventing them from infiltrating the UK retail sector. As part of its work programme, the group has shared experiences of technological anti-counterfeiting measures introduced in other countries. Several possible solutions are now being closely examined by the group, with a view to informing the Government's decisions on the way forward.

Tobacco

Eric Illsley: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what his most recent estimate is of the money lost to the UK Exchequer through the illicit trade in tobacco in the last three years.

John Healey: The most recent HM Revenue and Customs estimate of the money lost to the UK Exchequer through the illicit trade in tobacco is for 2003-04. The money lost to the UK Exchequer through the illicit trade in tobacco between 2000-01 to 2003-04 for cigarettes and hand rolling tobacco are given in Table 3.3 and Table 3.5 respectively of Measuring Indirect Tax Losses-2005, published by HM Revenue and Customs in December 2005 and is available from the House of Commons Library.

Valuation Office Agency

Caroline Spelman: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer how many press releases the Valuation Office Agency issued in 2005-06.

Dawn Primarolo: In 2005-06 the Valuation Office Agency (VOA) issued five press releases.
	The following press release was distributed to media with national coverage:
	7 June 2005VOA Appoints New Non-Executive Director.
	The Agency issued the following press releases locally:
	2 February 2005Businesses in South West Warned to Protect Themselves Against Fraudulent Agents
	24 May 2005Business in Blackpool Warned to Wise Up on Appeals
	27 September 2005The VOA and Kerrier District Council Celebrate 25-year Working Partnership
	22 December 2005-Support and Advice for Householders and Businesses Following Buncefield Explosion.
	Additionally, where it is brought to the VOA's attention that there is a need to warn council taxpayers locally of 'bogus inspectors', they will issue a standard press releaseAlert for Bogus Council Tax Inspectors.

Anti-drugs Initiatives (Departmental Funding)

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how much funding his Department is making available for activities to reduce the use of drugs among young people; and if he will make a statement.

Vernon Coaker: The Home Office has committed55.3 million in 2006-07 alongside contributions from other Government Departments to support work on reducing young people's drug use. This includes the contribution to the Young People's Substance Misuse Partnership Grant made available to local areas in addition to mainstream funds to deliver a comprehensive range of substance misuse interventions for young people; FRANK the Government's drug awareness campaign and the Positive Futures social inclusion programme which engages with young people.

Asylum Seekers

Mark Durkan: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department whether he plans to end the practice of transporting asylum seekers arriving in Northern Ireland to Dungavel Dentention Centre in Lanarkshire.

Liam Byrne: There are no plans to change the current arrangements whereby individuals in Northern Ireland who are detained under Immigration Act powers are transferred to a detention facility in Great Britain either on the day of detention or within 24 hours. In the majority of cases individuals are, initially, detained at Dungavel House Immigration Removal Centre.

British Muslim Citizenship Toolkits

Diane Abbott: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many British Muslim citizenship 'toolkits' have been dispatched by his Department.

Meg Munn: holding answer 18 May 2006
	I have been asked to reply.
	The development of a British Muslim Citizenship toolkit was one of the recommendations of the Preventing Extremism Together report published in November 2005 by workgroups from the Muslim community.
	The Governments view is that this toolkit should be developed by Muslim organisations with our support.
	The Government are supporting individuals and organisations to implement the recommendations but responsibility for this one lies with the Muslim community. Good progress is being made on a number of the recommendations and Government are encouraging Muslim organisations to develop this toolkit.

Brothels

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many  (a) brothels and  (b) massage parlours have been shut down by the policein each London borough in each of the last fiveyears.

Vernon Coaker: This information is not available centrally. For the future, we are looking to introduce monitoring arrangements as part of the prostitution strategy.

Child Welfare

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what procedures are followed to safeguard the welfare of dependent children when single parents with custody are given a custodial sentence immediately following conviction for an offence.

Gerry Sutcliffe: In the rare event that this situation arises, the court duty probation staff should offer assistance. In cases where they are not available, and court staff are made aware of an urgent child care need, an appropriate member of staff will contact the relevant children's services. Prison staff will also assist prisoners with any urgent issues on reception into custody, including child care. We recognise the need to strengthen such arrangements and the National Offender Management Service will achieve this as part of the framework for the children and families of offenders which it is developing.

Colnbrook Detention Centre

Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many detainees at Colnbrook detention centre were on hunger strike on 28 June.

Liam Byrne: I am advised that IND records indicate that, at Colnbrook removal centre on 28 June 2006, nine detainees did not take their evening meal that day and that there were five detainees who had refused to take the meals provided for three days or more. All were taking fluids.

Colnbrook Detention Centre

Damian Green: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on conditions at Colnbrook Detention Centre.

Liam Byrne: It is Government policy that all detainees must be treated with dignity and respect. The operation of all removal centres is governed by the Detention Centre Rules 2001 which are reinforced by Operating Standards. The Immigration Service and its contractors are committed to providing a safe and secure environment for all detainees. Detention is essential to effective immigration control and must be undertaken with humanity and dignity. Oversight of conditions in all removal centres is provided through Independent Monitoring Boards (IMB). An IMB is appointed to all removal centres and members report regularly to me on the state of the premises, the administration of the centre and the treatment of detainees. Centres are also inspected by Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Prisons and the comprehensive reports produced are used to produce auditable action plans to achieve improvements.
	Similar action is also undertaken in response to investigation reports into any deaths that may occur in centres which are undertaken by the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman.

Convention on Human Trafficking

Paddy Tipping: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the UK will ratify the Convention on Human Trafficking; what work remains to be done prior to ratification; and if he will make a statement.

Vernon Coaker: The UK is currently considering whether to sign the Council of Europe Convention on Action against Human Trafficking. In July last year a questionnaire was issued seeking information about the methods of support in place in other European Union (EU) countries. The responses to that questionnaire are now being analysed for evidence on how the automatic granting of reflection periods and residence permits to those presenting as victims of trafficking are operating in other European transit or destination countries where they have been introduced. A case-by-case approach, as operated in the United Kingdom, does not appear to be less effective at offering targeted support, than these new approaches. The Government are examining how the convention's approach could best be harmonised with effective immigration controls. They are also considering responses to the recent consultation paper on a proposed UK action plan on trafficking in humans. We intend to publish this action plan in the autumn.

Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he expects to answer the letter of 11 May from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mr. Abdul Halim.

Liam Byrne: I replied to my right hon. Friend on27 June 2006.

Correspondence

John Spellar: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when his Department will reply to the letter of 29 March 2006 from the right hon. Member for Warley regarding Mohammed Uddin, Dorlton Drive, Smethwick.

Liam Byrne: The Immigration and Nationality Directorate wrote to the right hon. Member for Warley on 28 June 2006.

Correspondence

Clare Short: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the Minister for Immigration will reply to the letter from the right hon. Member for Birmingham, Ladywood, dated 30 March 2006 on behalf of Mrs. Fadumo Mohd Sharif-Said, Home Office reference S1175012, acknowledged on 5 May 2006, reference B8779/6.

Liam Byrne: The Immigration and Nationality Directorate (IND) wrote to my right hon. Friend on 29 June 2006.

Correspondence

Clare Short: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when the immigration and nationality directorate will reply to the letter from the hon. Member for Birmingham, Ladywood of 29 March on behalf of Halrick Thompson (Home Office reference T1077292, acknowledgement reference B8645/6).

Liam Byrne: The immigration and nationality directorate wrote to the hon. Member for Ladywood on 30 June 2006.

Correspondence

Michael Spicer: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he will reply to the letter from the hon. Member for West Worcestershire of 2 May, about Government consultation on new laws to promote gay rights.

Tony McNulty: The letter dated 28 April was received on 3 May and transferred to the Department for Trade and Industry on 4 May. The subject matter subsequently became the responsibility of the Department for Community and Local Government who have advised that a reply will be sent to the hon. Member for West Worcestershire shortly.

Correspondence

Gerald Kaufman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he will answer the letter of 15 May from the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton with regard to Mr. Gordon Okome.

Liam Byrne: I wrote to the right hon. Member for Manchester, Gorton on 3 July 2006.

Correspondence

Michael Spicer: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he will reply to theletter from the hon. Member for West Worcestershire (Sir Michael Spicer) of 26 April (Your Ref: M10324/6), on the Sexual Orientation Regulations.

Vernon Coaker: The Department for Communities and Local Government is leading on issues relating to the Sexual Orientation Regulations. My hon. Friend the Member for Sheffield, Heeley (Meg Munn) replied to the correspondence on 29 June.

Crime Statistics

Brian Jenkins: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many  (a) males and  (b) females (i) were found guilty of and (ii) pleaded guilty to complicity in or assisting  (A) a suicide and  (B) infanticide in (1) Tamworth and (2) the West Midlands in the last period for which figures are available.

Tony McNulty: Data from the court proceedings database held by the Office for Criminal Justice Reform shows that there were no convictions for aiding and abetting suicide in the West Midlands in 2004. Offences of complicity in or assisting infanticide cannot be separated from the offence of infanticide itself in the data held. However the records show that there were no convictions for infanticide in the West Midlands in 2004. Had there been conviction data for West Midlands, we would be unable to provide a convictions figure for Tamworth constituency, as the data is not available at the level of detail required.
	Figures for 2005 will be available in the autumn of 2006.

Daniel Dyakov

Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department when he will return the passport of Daniel Dyakov, Ref. No. D1054256.

Liam Byrne: Daniel Dyakov's passport was returned by recorded delivery to his representatives, Summer Star Solicitors, on 28 June 2006.

Deaths in Prison

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many deaths in prison have resulted from  (a) natural causes,  (b) accident and  (c) self-inflicted injury in each prison in each of the last five years; and if he will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The information requested with respect to natural causes deaths and other non-natural deaths (which includes accidents) in prisons in England and Wales, 2001-05, is shown in the following table. For the information with respect to self-inflicted deaths, I refer the hon. Member to the answer given to the hon. Member for North-West Norfolk (Mr. Bellingham) on 20 March 2006,  Official Report, column 122W.
	
		
			  Prison  Type of death  2001  2002  2001  2004  2005 
			 Acklington Natural Causes 2 2 3 3 4 
			 Albany Natural Causes 3 2 4 2 3 
			 Altcourse Natural Causes 3 1 2  2 
			 Ashwell Natural Causes 1  1  1 
			 Bedford Natural Causes  1
			 Belmarsh Natural Causes 1 2 3 2 1 
			  Other non-natural 1 
			  Unclassified 1 
			 Birmingham Natural Causes 2  1 1 1 
			 Blakenhurst Natural Causes 3 1  1 1 
			 Blundeston Natural Causes  1
			 Bristol Natural Causes5  
			 Brixton Other non-natural1  
			 Brockhill Natural Causes 1 
			 Bronzefield Natural Causes 2 
			 Bullingdon Natural Causes  1 1 2 1 
			 Camp Hill Natural Causes1  
			 Canterbury Natural Causes  1
			 Cardiff Natural Causes1  
			 Castington Other non-natural 1 
			 Channings Wood Natural Causes  1 1   
			 Chelmsford Natural Causes  1  1  
			 Coldingley Natural Causes  1   1 
			 Cookham Wood Natural Causes 1 
			 Dartmoor Natural Causes 1  1  1 
			 Doncaster Natural Causes  2 2 1  
			  Other non-natural1  
			 Dovegate Natural Causes  2 1 1 1 
			 Durham Natural Causes 1  1 3 1 
			 East Sutton Park Natural Causes 1 
			 Eastwood Park Natural Causes  1  3  
			 Edmunds Hill Natural Causes  1
			 Elmley Natural Causes 1 1  2 3 
			  Unclassified 1 
			 Everthorpe Natural Causes 2 
			 Exeter Natural Causes 1  1  1 
			 Ford Natural Causes1  
			 Forest Bank Natural Causes  1
			 Foston Hall Natural Causes1  
			 Frankland Natural Causes 3 4 1 3 4 
			 Full Sutton Natural Causes  1 2 1  
			  Other non-natural1  
			 Garth Natural Causes   1 1  
			 Gartree Natural Causes   1   
			 Gloucester Natural Causes 1 1   1 
			 Grendon Natural Causes  1
			 Guys Marsh Natural Causes   1  1 
			 Haslar Natural Causes1  
			 Haverigg Natural Causes1  
			 Hewell Grange Natural Causes 1 
			 High Down Natural Causes   1  1 
			 Hollesley Bay Natural Causes 1 
			 Holloway Natural Causes   1 1  
			  Other non-natural 1 
			 Holme House Natural Causes 2  1 1 2 
			  Other non-natural1  
			 Hull Natural Causes 2  1 4  
			  Other non-natural1  
			 Kingston Natural Causes 1 2 2 4  
			 Kirkham Natural Causes1 2 
			 Latchmere House Natural Causes  1
			 Leeds Natural Causes  1 1  4 
			 Leicester Natural Causes1  
			 Lewes Natural Causes1 1 
			 Leyhill Natural Causes  2  1 1 
			 Lincoln Natural Causes 1   1  
			  Other non-natural  1
			 Lindholme Natural Causes 1   1  
			 Littlehey Natural Causes  2 3 1 3 
			 Liverpool Natural Causes 1 2 3 1  
			  Other non-natural 1 
			 Low Newton Natural Causes1  
			 Lowdham Grange Natural Causes 1 
			 Maidstone Natural Causes 1 1 2 2  
			 Manchester Natural Causes 1 2 2  2 
			 Mount Natural Causes 1   1  
			 New Hall Natural Causes  1
			 North Sea Camp Natural causes1 1 
			 Norwich Natural Causes  2 2 1 1 
			 Nottingham Natural Causes 1 2 1  1 
			 Parc Natural Causes 1 1 3 2 2 
			  Other non-natural   1   
			 Parkhurst Natural Causes   2 1 3 
			 Pentonville Natural Causes 3 4 1  2 
			 Peterborough Natural Causes 1 
			 Preston Natural Causes 2   2  
			 Ranby Natural Causes2  
			 Risley Natural Causes 4 1 1   
			  Other non-natural 1   2  
			 Rye Hill Natural Causes  1 3 5 4 
			  Other non-natural1  
			 Shepton Mallet Natural Causes2  
			 Stafford Natural Causes   2 1  
			 Standford Hill Natural Causes   1   
			 Stocken Natural Causes  2  1 1 
			 Sudbury Natural Causes 1 
			 Swaleside Natural Causes  2 2 1 4 
			  Other non-natural  1
			 Swansea Natural Causes   2  1 
			 Usk\Prescoed Natural Causes 1  1  1 
			 Verne Natural Causes 1  1   
			 Wakefield Natural Causes 5 1 6 4 3 
			 Wandsworth Natural Causes 3 1 1  2 
			  Other non-natural1  
			 Wayland Natural Causes 1   1  
			 Wealstun Natural Causes   1   
			 Weare Natural Causes1  
			 Whatton Natural Causes2  
			 Whitemoor Natural Causes   2 2  
			 Winchester Natural Causes 2  1 3 1 
			  Other non-natural  1
			 Wolds Natural Causes  1
			 Woodhill Natural Causes 2  3 1 4 
			 Wormwood Scrubs Natural Causes   3  1 
			 Wymott Natural Causes 1 3 2 7 5 
			  Notes:Unclassified deaths are those where further information is awaited. Other non-natural Deaths includes apparent accidents and non-intentional drug overdoses, but not homicides.

Departmental Advertising

Adam Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many advertisements have been placed by his Department  (a) in newspapers,  (b) on the radio,  (c) on television,  (d) on billboards and  (e) in other media warning those who do not comply with the law (i) of the possibility of (A) fines, (B) a prison sentence and (ii) that they are putting themselves and others at risk of personal harm in each of the last five years; and what the cost of such advertisements was in this period.

Liam Byrne: To actually count the number of advertisements would not be possible since advertising campaigns are not purchased in terms of number of advertsthey are purchased in terms of what percentage of our target audience we expect of reach, or to a given budget level. However we are able to set out the level total media expenditure in the following table:
	 Advertisements warning of fines in last five years
	
		
			  Alcohol Misuse enforcement campaign 
			
			 2005-06 93,865 
		
	
	 Advertisements warning that they are putting themselves and/or others at risk of personal harm in last five years
	
		
			
			  Domestic violence  
			 2001-02 0 
			 2002-03 0 
			 2003-04 936,587 
			 2004-05 450,635 
			 2005-06 162,696 
			   
			  Child Protection on the Internet  
			 2001-02 1,281,529 
			 2002-03 763,290 
			 2003-04 825,557 
			 2004-05 299,094 
			 2005-06 (1)879,001 
			 (1) To date 
		
	
	 Advertisements warning of a prison sentence in lastfive years
	
		
			  Rape 
			
			 2006 346,430

Departmental Staff

Philip Hammond: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many and what proportion of  (a) staff and  (b) new staff employed in (i) his Department and (ii) each of the agencies for which he has responsibility were registered as disabled in each of the last three years for which data is available.

Liam Byrne: The Cabinet Office collects and publishes annually statistical information on the civil serviceby Department. These include data on the number ofstaff in Departments who have declared a disability. Declaration of a disability is voluntary. The latest available information at April 2004 is available in the Library and on the civil service website and the following addresses: http://www.civilservice.gov.uk/management/statistics/publications/xls/disability_apr 04_4nov04.xls for data relating to 1 April 2004, and http://www.civilservice.gov.uk/management/statistics/archive/index.asp for previous reporting periods.
	 Home Office
	In addition to the above data, the figures shown are available for the Home Office and are set out in the tables. Data has been taken from central HR systems unless otherwise stated.
	 Home Office Agencies
	The UK Passport Service record staff who 'declare' themselves as disabled. The source of their figures is the published Employment Monitoring Reports for the years in question. New entrant disability data is not available for 2002-03 and 2003-04. In 2004-05 less than 1 per cent. of new entrants declared a disability
	The number of public sector Prison Service staff over the past three years recorded as having a disability, and the total number of recruits to the public sector Prison Service who declared themselves disabled on entry during the past three years is shown in the tables. There is no longer such a thing as a registered disabled person. Someone is said to have a disability if their condition meets with the definition contained in the Disability Discrimination Act 1995. A full re-survey of all staff was carried out in 2004, resulting in the increased numbers declaring themselves disabled after 2003.
	
		
			  Home Office (including Immigration and Nationality Directorate) 
			   1 April 2003  1 April 2004  31 December 2005 
			 Disabled 489 474 489 
			 Total staff 17,965 20,052 (1)21,119 
			 Proportion (percentage) 2.72 2.36 2.31 
		
	
	
		
			   2003( 2)  2004( 2)  2005( 2) 
			 Disabled 27 16 4 
			 Total recruits 3,334 2,786 (1)4,169 
			 Proportion (percentage) 0.8 0.57 (3) 
		
	
	
		
			  Home Office Agencies 
			   2002-03  2003-04  2004-05 
			  UKPA
			 Disabled 200 216 196 
			 Total staff(4) 2,740 2,919 3,266 
			 Proportion (percentage) 7.3 7.4 6 
		
	
	
		
			   31 December: 
			   2003  2004  2005 
			  HM Prison Service
			 Disabled 588 1468 1629 
			 Total staff 47,427 48,633 48,425 
			 Proportion (percentage) 1.2 3.0 3.4 
		
	
	
		
			   2003  2004  2005 
			 Disabled 43 76 55 
			 Total recruits 6,993 6,167 5,528 
			 Proportion (percentage) 0.6 1 .2 1.0 
			 (1) Figures include approximately 1,000 National Offenders Management Service (NOMS) HQ staff, moving into Home Office responsibility.  (2) Because of the transfer of staff records between HR systems data is here given for fiscal years i.e. 2004 = 1 April 2003 to 31 March 2004.  (3) Not available. Disability data is unrecorded for-95 per cent. of 2005 new entrants, consequently no valid percentage can be derived at present.  (4) Approximate value from published disability value and percentage.

Foreign Prisoners

Tony Baldry: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many of the 107 foreign nationals released from prison whose whereabouts are known to the Home Office should have been deported; and how many his Department has identified as living in Oxfordshire.

Liam Byrne: My right hon. Friend the Home Secretary updated the House on this matter on 29 June 2006 in a written ministerial statement,  Official Report, column 18WS, and the director general of the Immigration and Nationality Directorate (IND) wrote on this date to the chairman of the Home Affairs Select Committee on the number of cases where foreign national prisoners were released without proper deportation consideration. A copy of the letter has been placed in both Libraries.

Foreign Prisoners

David Wilshire: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will list the foreign nationals recently released from prison and recommended for deportation, broken down by  (a) prison from which they were released,  (b) date of release and  (c) offence; how many have re-offended since release; and in how many cases current whereabouts are unknown.

Liam Byrne: holding answer 2 May 2006
	My right hon. Friend the Home Secretary updated the House on this matter on 29 June 2006 in a written ministerial statement,  Official Report, column 18WS, and the director general of the Immigration and Nationality Directorate (IND) wrote on this date to the chairman of the Home Affairs Select Committee on the number of cases where foreign national prisoners were released without proper deportation consideration. A copy of the letter has been placed in both Libraries.

IT Costs

David Laws: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate his Department has made of the likely costs of implementing new IT systems arising from the options under consideration from the merger of police forces in the South West.

Tony McNulty: There is currently careful consideration of a number of options for the way forward for the South West and each option will have differing implications for IT provision. Each option has been analysed financially in relation to both set-up costs and savings and the forces will be informed of this detail once a decision is made.
	A joint Home Office, Association of Chief Police Officers (ACPO), Association of Police Authorities (APA) and Police Information and Technology Organisation (PITO) working group has been established to work in conjunction with police force project teams to ensure that all ICT requirements, and associated costs, are identified.

Knife Amnesty

Greg Knight: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many knives have been handed in during the amnesty in  (a) East Yorkshire constituency and  (b) the East Riding of Yorkshire area.

Vernon Coaker: Figures for the number of items handed in during the knife amnesty are being collected at police force level and will be released shortly. 17,715 items were handed in in England and Wales during the first week of the amnesty. We worked closely with ACPO to develop the arrangements for the amnesty, which was part of our wider strategy to tackle knife crime. We are also focusing on legislation, enforcement, education and prevention. We have brought forward provisions in the Violent Crime Reduction Bill that will raise the age at which someone can be sold a knife to 18; are introducing a new offence of using someone to mind a weapon; and giving head teachers powers to search pupils for knives. The Home Secretary announced on 19 June that he was giving very serious consideration to the suggestion that the maximum sentence for having a knife or blade in a public place should be increased from the current sentence of two years. Many police forces are undertaking tough enforcement operations, for example, the Metropolitan police's Operation Blunt and the British Transport police's Operation Shield, which uses search equipment to detect those carrying knives and other weapons on our transport network. We are also supporting educational initiatives that demonstrate to young people the dangers of carrying knives, and reinforce the message that carrying a knife can result in it being turned on you. Through our small grants programme, the Connected Fund, we are also supporting a wide range of local community projects which work with young people to provide mentoring, training, education and other support.

Legislation

David Amess: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department which Private Members' Bills were drafted by his Department in each Session since 1997; and which subsequently received Royal Assent.

Tony McNulty: Members will consider a range of possible subjects before introducing their Private Members' Bills.
	Government draftsmen do draft some Bills in advance which are available as one of the options for Members to consider before they make their selection.
	However, Members may make subsequent amendments or revisions to a Government drafted Bill, or use it as the basis for a Private Members' Bill in the future.
	The information requested is therefore not collected.

Offenders

Ashok Kumar: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what research the Department has undertaken on rehabilitation rates of offenders.

Gerry Sutcliffe: A number of interventions are made in custody and the community to support the rehabilitation of offenders. These include offending behaviour programmes, drug treatment, unpaid work and education and employment. There is robust evidence, originating mainly from North America, to support the effectiveness of offending behaviour programmes in reducing re-offending; the UK research is more limited and mixed. The evaluations to date of drug treatment programmes also suggest that these programmes can reduce re-offending. There is some evidence of employment schemes helping to secure employment for ex-prisoners and of basic skills training improving prisoners' skills. However, evidence on the extent to which improvements in these skills can lead to reductions in re-offending is still limited (Harper  Chitty, 2005). The current Home Office research programme includes further research on the effectiveness of a wide range of interventions aimed at reducing re-offending.

Offenders

David Davis: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what guidance he has issued to the probation service in the last 12 months on whether offenders on licence should be granted permission to travel abroad;
	(2)  what changes have been made in the last 12 months to regulations governing whether offenders under the supervision of the probation service may travel abroad; and if he will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Probation Circular 4/2006 sets out the revised policy in respect of determinate sentence prisoners who request permission to temporary travel abroad. A copy of the circular is available in the Library of the House. The circular requires the probation service to consider all applications to travel on their individual merits, and stipulates that such requests should not be granted if there are any concerns on grounds of risk. Permission should be granted only in the most exceptional circumstances and where the prisoner has demonstrated that the need to travel is so pressing that it must be given priority over the statutory aims of supervision.

Operation Pentameter

Anthony Steen: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many under 18-year-olds have been identified in recent raids by Operation Pentameter; and how many of these have been subsequently referred to the Poppy Project.

Vernon Coaker: holding answer 21 June 2006
	Operation Pentameter rescued 12 minors aged between 14 and 17. None of these minors where referred to the Poppy Project as victims have to be over 18 to meet the criteria for the project. Three of the minors have been repatriated and the remaining nine are in the care of social services.

Police

Bill Wiggin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what estimate he has made of the cost of creating a West Midlands regional police force.

Tony McNulty: holding answer 10 May 2006
	The gross costs of merger are currently calculated at57 million. There would be net set-up costs, after projected savings, in the first two years of restructuring. During the first five years of operation of the new force a net saving of 72 million is projected. The Government are committed to paying 100 per cent. of reasonable set-up revenue and capital costs of restructuring, net of reasonable savings.

Police

Don Touhig: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what funding will be made available to support the merger of police forces in Wales; and if he will make a statement.

Tony McNulty: The estimated set up cost of a strategic police force for Wales is 35 million. We are committed to paying 100 per cent. of reasonable set up revenue and capital costs, net of reasonable savings. The precise projected level of these costs and savings is a matter for negotiations currently taking place.
	Long-term savings made possible by the merger are currently estimated at around 16 million a year.

Police

Matthew Taylor: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the net expenditure was on police per head of the population in  (a) Devon,  (b) Cornwall and  (c) England in each year since 1999.

Tony McNulty: The information is set out in the following table. Devon and Cornwall are a combined police authority and data on policing costs for the two counties separately are not available
	
		
			   Devon and Cornwall  England 
			   Net expenditure( 1)  ()  Resident population  Expenditure per head of population ()  Net expenditure( 1)  ()  Resident population  Expenditure per head of population () 
			 1999-2000 175,055,000 1,551,480 112.83 7,074,920,000 49,279,007 143.57 
			 2000-01 182,367,000 1,558,758 117.00 7,372,617,000 49,489,372 148.97 
			 2001-02 191,117,000 1,569,666 121.76 7,852,807,000 49,746,857 157.86 
			 2002-03 198,375,000 1,586,655 125.03 8,153,101,000 49,990,718 163.09 
			 2003-04 220,160,000 1,578,595 139.47 8,910,451,000 49,174,123 181.20 
			 2004-05 233,170,000 1,590,699 146.58 9,408,454,000 49,553,944 189.86 
			 2005-06 243,711,000 1,601,215 152.20 9,631,146,000 49,847,697 193.21 
			 ( 1 ) Source for net expenditure:The Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy Police Statistics (Estimates for 2005-06)

Police

Stewart Jackson: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to his Answer of 16 May 2006,  Official Report, column 903W, on police, if he will collect data centrally on the numbers of  (a) police officers and  (b) other employees who have taken early retirement in each police force in England and Wales in each year since 1997; and if he will make a statement.

Tony McNulty: We do not currently collect data centrally on the number of early retirements amongst police staff and there are no comparable figures to collect in respect of police officers. In view of the operational requirements of policing officers may retire under the Police Pension Scheme of 1987, which applies to those who joined the service before 6 April 2006, with an immediate ordinary pension after 30 years' service or from age 50 if they have at least 25 years' service. The only means by which officers can retire earlier than that with a pension is on the grounds of ill-health. The rate of ill-health retirements among police officers has fallen from 14 per 1,000 officers in service in 1997-98 to three per 1,000 in 2004-05. We will consider the case for widening the scope of the data we collect from forces in the way suggested by the hon. Member.

Police

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what percentage of police officers in each police authority area come from ethnic minority backgrounds.

Tony McNulty: The information requested is available in the 'Police Service Strength publication as at 31 March 2005'. This report was published on 25 July 2005 and is available in the Library of the House and on:http://www.homeoffice.gov.uk/rds/pdfs06/hosb0106.pdf.

Pornography

Si�n James: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what progress is being made on preventing children from gaining access to hardcore pornography.

Vernon Coaker: Strong controls already exist to protect children from hardcore pornography in the UK. I refer my hon. Friend to the answers my hon. Friend the Member for Wythenshawe and Sale, East (Paul Goggins) gave on 23 March 2006,  Official Report, column 607W, and 28 March 2006,  Official Report, column 909W, and the answer given by my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) on27 March 2006,  Official Report, column 651W. In addition, DCMS Ministers have agreed a code of practice with the British Hospitality Association to prevent children under the age of 18 from exposure to video works classified at 18/R18 provided through pay to view systems in hotels.

Post Office Contracts

Danny Alexander: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department for which services  (a) his Department and  (b) its associated public bodies hold contracts with the Post Office; and what the (i) start and (ii) termination date is of each contract.

Liam Byrne: Two services are made available by Post Office Ltd. on behalf of the Department. The cash payment facility for asylum seekers is provided by National Asylum Support Services (NASS) through the Sodexho Pass contract which subcontracts to the Post Office the distribution of cash to asylum seekers. The contract commenced on 7 January 2000, and has been extended in accordance with the contract, it expires on 31 December 2006. A new cash payment contract however is due to be let in July 2006 with a view to going live no later than 31 December 2006. Post Office Ltd. provides a passport application Check  Send service and hold passport applications packs at post office branches on behalf of the Identity and Passport Service (IPS). This service has operated since 1996. The current agreement for the Check  Send service runs until 30 September 2007. Before the expiry of the current agreement IPS expect to run a procurement exercise for a continuation of this provision.

Post Office Network Services

Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what services  (a) his Department and  (b) its associated public bodies (i) make available and (ii) have made available in the last five years through the Post Office network; through how many outlets the service is or was made available; and how many relevant transactions were undertaken in each case in the most recent year for which figures are available.

Liam Byrne: Two services are made available by Post Office Ltd. on behalf of the Department. The cash payment facility for asylum seekers is provided by National Asylum Support Services (NASS) through the Sodexho Pass contract which subcontracts to the Post Office, the distribution of cash to asylum seekers, using a total of 530 outlets throughout the UK (although only about 420 outlets are currently used). The contract commenced on 7 January 2000 and has been extended in accordance with the contract. It expires on 31 December 2006.A new cash payment contract however is due to be let in July 2006 with a view to going live no later than31 December 2006 Post Office Ltd. (POL) provide a passport application Check and Send service and hold passport applications packs at 2,513 branches on behalf of the Identity and Passport Service. This service has operated since 1996 and from June 2005 to May 2006 POL processed 2,721,334 passport applications through this service.

Prisoner Information Points

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will make a statement on the  (a) deployment,  (b) availability and  (c) use of prisoner information points; which prison establishments have such facilities; what plans he has to extend availability in each prison; how much has been spent in each prison establishment on prisoner information points; and what mechanisms are in place to ensure public protection through these facilities.

Gerry Sutcliffe: In 2004, British Telecommunications plc was awarded a contract to construct and install Prisoner Information Points (PIPs). HM Prison Service (HMPS) has assisted BT in developing the product, but has no obligation to purchase any terminals. It is therefore left to individual establishments to decide whether they wish to purchase the PIPs. The Eastern Region of the Legal Services Commission (LSC) has purchased 14 terminals to serve prisons in the East Midlands area, as part of their resettlement agenda. In exchange, HMPS has provided facilities for LSC to present local information on the PIPs in these prisons, which are based on the seven resettlement pathways. Currently there are orders for a total of 22 PIPs based in 17 establishments. The information on the terminals is based on the 21 Prison Service Standards which directly affect prisoners' day to day life. The terminals are a stand alone system and do not permit prisoner access to the internet.

Prisoners

Nicholas Clegg: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Shipley (Philip Davies) of 7 November 2005,  Official Report, column 57W, on prisoners, how many crimes were committed by people released from prison before the end of their sentence in 2005-06.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Information on the number of prisoners released on parole licence who were recalled to prison in 2005-06 because of being charged with a further offence will be published in the Parole Board annual report for 2005-06 available towards the end of 2006. In the year1 April 2005 to 31 March 2006, around 16,600 prisoners were released on HDC, according to the prison IT system. By the end of May 2006 the Home Office had been notified of 965 offences, reported as committed during the period 1 April 2005 to 31 March 2006, for which a prisoner on HDC had been cautioned, convicted or was awaiting prosecution (which may not result in a conviction). This figure will change in future as further reports are received of acquittals, charges dropped, further offences identified, or convictions.

Prisons

Stewart Hosie: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what spending on the prison service is  (a) identifiable and  (b) non-identifiable for the purposes of the public expenditure statistical analysis.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The DEL expenditure for HM Prison Service during 2004-05 was 2,446,412,000 of which: 167,791,000 is regarded as identifiable expenditure and 2,278,621,000 is regarded as non-identifiable expenditure.

Prisons

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many inmates have had added days awarded to them by the independent adjudicator and subsequently also had days restored to them by prison governors in each prison in each of the last12 months; how many days were (i) awarded by the independent adjudicator and (ii) restored by the governor in each case; what the reasons were for the restoration in each case; and if he will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The numbers of added days imposed or remitted in each prison will vary according to the size of the establishment and the nature of the population. Detailed information is not collated centrally. The reasons for restoration of added days in individual cases are not recorded centrally, but in each case the governor (or Controller in contracted prisons) considers applications for remission according to criteria set out in Prison Service guidance.

Prisons

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what the cost of independent adjudications was in each prison establishment for each of the last 12 months.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The cost of each visit by an independent adjudicator (District Judge) to an establishment is estimated at 700, including an estimated average for expenses of 100 per visit.
	A monthly breakdown of independent adjudicators' visits to each prison is not available.

Prisons

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many Irish nationals are being held in each prison establishment.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Information on the numbers of Irish national prisoners held in prison establishments within England and Wales, as recorded on the Prison IT System, is contained within the following table;
	
		
			  Irish national prisoners by prison establishment in England and Wales 30 April 2006 
			   Number 
			 Altcourse 11 
			 Askham Grange 1 
			 Acklington 1 
			 Albany 11 
			 Ashfield 1 
			 Ashwell 4 
			 Aylesbury 3 
			 Belmarsh 17 
			 Buckley Hall 3 
			 Blundeston 6 
			 Bedford 5 
			 Blantyre House 0 
			 Brockhill 0 
			 Bristol 5 
			 Birmingham 12 
			 Bullingdon 9 
			 Brinsford 1 
			 Blakenhurst 4 
			 Bullwood Hall 0 
			 Brixton 18 
			 Bronzfield 7 
			 Chelmsford 9 
			 Cardiff 5 
			 Camp Hill 2 
			 Cookham Wood 3 
			 Coldingly 2 
			 Castington 0 
			 Channings Wood 5 
			 Canterbury 3 
			 Dartmoor 4 
			 Dovegate 8 
			 Drake Hall 0 
			 Durham 1 
			 Doncaster 1 
			 Dorchester 1 
			 Deerbolt 0 
			 Dover 0 
			 Downview 4 
			 Erlestoke 4 
			 Standford Hill 3 
			 East Sutton Park 1 
			 Everthorpe 1 
			 Eastwood Park 1 
			 Exeter 3 
			 Elmley 11 
			 Forest Bank 12 
			 Ford 7 
			 Foston Hall 1 
			 Frankland 6 
			 Feltham 10 
			 Full Sutton 9 
			 Featherstone 8 
			 Garth 5 
			 Gloucester 0 
			 Guys Marsh 8 
			 Grendon (Spring Hill) 10 
			 Glen Parva 2 
			 Gartree 5 
			 Hollesley Bay (Warren Hill) 2 
			 Huntercombe 2 
			 Moorland Open 0 
			 Hewell Grange 1 
			 Holme House 2 
			 Hindley 2 
			 Hull 3 
			 Highdown 10 
			 Highpoint South 12 
			 Haslar 0 
			 Haverigg 0 
			 Holloway 10 
			 Kirkham 1 
			 Kirklevington 0 
			 Lancaster 1 
			 Leicester 3 
			 Leeds 7 
			 Lancaster Farms 1 
			 Lowdham Grange 9 
			 Lindholme 4 
			 Lincoln 0 
			 Long Lartin 5 
			 Latchmere House 3 
			 Low Newton 0 
			 Liverpool 6 
			 Littlehey 8 
			 Lewes 5 
			 Leyhill 4 
			 Moorland 1 
			 Morton Hall 0 
			 Manchester 13 
			 Maidstone 7 
			 Mount 15 
			 Highpoint North 9 
			 New Hall 3 
			 Nottingham 2 
			 Northallerton 0 
			 North Sea Camp 4 
			 Norwich 2 
			 Onley 6 
			 Peterborough 5 
			 Portland 7 
			 Parkhurst 6 
			 Preston 3 
			 Pare 10 
			 Kingston (Portsmouth) 5 
			 Pentonville 29 
			 Rochester 2 
			 Reading 1 
			 Rye Hill 6 
			 Ranby 11 
			 Risley 4 
			 Send 3 
			 Stafford 9 
			 Stoke Heath 3 
			 Stocken 6 
			 Swaleside 6 
			 Shepton Mallet 1 
			 Swinfen Hall 0 
			 Styal 2 
			 Sudbury 4 
			 Swansea 6 
			 Shrewsbury 2 
			 Thorn Cross 0 
			 Usk (Prescoed) 2 
			 Verne 2 
			 Wellingborough 3 
			 Winchester 6 
			 Wakefield 9 
			 Wealstun 2 
			 Woodhill 13 
			 Warren Hill 1 
			 Wayland 7 
			 Wymott 6 
			 Werrington 0 
			 Wolds 0 
			 Whitemoor 5 
			 Wormwood Scrubs 35 
			 Whatton 5 
			 Wandsworth 24 
			 Wetherby 1 
			 Total 693

Prisons

Henry Bellingham: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department 
	(1)  what mechanisms exist to monitor inmates' cars parked at prison establishments to ensure that the vehicles are  (a) legally registered as owned by the inmate claiming ownership and  (b) displaying valid tax discs; and if he will make a statement;
	(2)  what proportion of inmates at HM Prison Latchmere House are currently allowed to park their cars in the establishment's car park; and if he will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: There are no mandatory instructions on how to monitor cars belonging to prisoners. Each establishment requires prisoners to comply with the law. For example, at Latchmere House, vehicle registration documents must be in the prisoner's own name and have the address as Latchmere House. Documents are kept in prisoners valuables and an application must be made, with a reason, for any withdrawals. The tax disc is photocopied and a renewal date entered on the car document log which is checked monthly by the Job Club to ensure tax is still current. 30 prisoners, as at16 June 2006, use the establishment's car park, out of a population of 169.

Prisons

Patrick McLoughlin: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prisoners have escaped from HMP Sudbury in Derbyshire in the last year for which figures are available; what the  (a) offence and  (b) sentence of each absconder was; what the remaining length of sentence was of each absconder; how many have been caught; and if he will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: holding answer 26 June 2006
	76 prisoners absconded from Sudbury open prison during 2005-06, the latest year for which data are available. Of these 14 remain unlawfully at large. Details of each absconder's offence and sentence could be obtained only by examination of each prisoner's record at a disproportionate cost.

Prisons

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many prisoners under the age of 18 years are in each prison; what plans he has to transfer those individuals to specialist youth institutions; and if he will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: The number of young people under 18 accommodated in each young offender institution (run by the Prison Service or private contractors) on 28 April (the most recent date for which figures are available) is set out in the following table. On the same date, 243 under-18s were accommodated in secure training centres and 230 in secure children's homes. These figures and those in the table were provided by the Youth Justice Board.
	The Youth Justice Board has responsibility for deciding, on behalf of the Secretary of State, where young people serving Detention and Training Orders are to be accommodated. The board's decisions take account of the age and sex of the young person, his or her individual needs and where he or she normally lives. The Prison Service performs the same function in relation to under-18s sentenced to longer periods of detention. Young offender institutions, secure training centres and secure children's homes are all specialist youth institutions, with staff who are trained in the needs of young people. The higher staff-to-trainee ratios in secure training centres and secure children's homes are more suited to the needs of younger trainees and those who are more vulnerable.
	
		
			  Young people under 18 in young offender institutions as at 28 April 2006 
			   Number 
			  Male establishments  
			 Ashfield 286 
			 Brinsford 187 
			 Castington 134 
			 Feltham 194 
			 Hindley 147 
			 Huntercombe 296 
			 Lancaster Farms 201 
			 Parc 22 
			 Stoke Heath 172 
			 Thorn Cross 20 
			 Warren Hill 186 
			 Werrington 144 
			 Wetherby 289 
			 Woodhill(1) 4 
			 Total males under 18 2,282 
			   
			  Female establishments  
			 Cookhamwood 14 
			 Downview 15 
			 Eastwoodpark (2)15 
			 New Hall 20 
			 Total females under 18 64 
			 Grand total 2,346 
			 (1) Woodhill is a high security establishment holding young people with category A status. Under-18s are held in a dedicated unit and follow the under-18 regime.  (2) One of these young women is in the mother and baby unit and another in the detoxification unit.

Probation Service

Anne Main: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what assessment his Department has made of the effectiveness of the probation facilities in Hertfordshire; and if he will make a statement.

Gerry Sutcliffe: Details of the performance of the 42 Probation Areas in England and Wales against targets set for the National Probation Service for 2005-06may be found in the National Probation Service Performance Report issue 20 which is posted on the NPS website at: http://www.probation.homeoffice. gov.uk/output/page34.asp.
	Issue 20 showed Hertfordshire as the worst performing area in the weighted scorecard, which ranks probation areas according to their performance across the range of key indicators. The greatest areas of concern are with performance in relation to the two key targets on OASys risk assessments on (a) high risk offenders and (b) prolific and other priority offenders (PPOs). Performance on both these targets was 14 per cent. in 2005-06. The target for both high risk and PPOs is 90 per cent.
	Performance on the enforcement target is the worst of all the probation areas at 80 per cent. The target is 90 per cent. and the aggregate of all areas in England and Wales was 91 per cent. Hertfordshire achieved77 per cent. on compliance against a target of 85 per cent. and an England and Wales average of 81 per cent. Against a target of 645 completions of unpaid work orders, Hertfordshire achieved 464 (72 per cent.).49 per cent. of victims were contacted within the timescale required by national standardsthe target is 85 per cent. and nationally the NPS is achieving 93 per cent. The remaining key performance indicators are at or around target with the exception of basic skills awards where double the awards target was achieved in 2005-06.
	HM Inspectorate of Probation, as an independent inspectorate reporting to Ministers on the work of the National Probation Service, published an inspection report on Hertfordshire Probation Area in March 2004 under its Effective Supervision Inspection programme. This showed poor performance, particularly in the assessment and supervision of offenders who posed a high risk of harm to others, and that the Area needed to make significant improvements in its overall operation.
	In view of the results of this inspection, HM Inspectorate of Probation undertook a follow-up inspection of Hertfordshire which was published in January 2005. This indicated considerable signs of improvement, but that further work was needed to improve the quality of effective supervision, and particularly of the management of risk of harm.
	All HMI Probation reports are published, and copies are in the Library of the House.

Sex Offenders

Lynne Featherstone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many registered sex offenders reside in each London borough.

Gerry Sutcliffe: This data will be made available in local Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements (MAPPA) annual reports, which are due to be published in October.

Terrorism

Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how he expects the EU plans to introduce a non-emotive lexicon to help combat terrorism to work in practice; and if he will make a statement.

Tony McNulty: Under the UK presidency, in the context of the EU's Action Plan to counter radicalisation and recruitment to terrorism, the Government proposed the development of a 'non-emotive lexicon'. This proposal reflected our recognition, and that of the EU, that certain terms are potentially inflammatory if used inappropriately and there are those who wish to misrepresent Government policies as anti-Muslim or anti-Islam. The Austrian presidency took work on this forward with the development of a short list of key terms and a broader EU communications strategy, which was designed to provide a framework for discussing issues related to Islamist terrorism. The lexicon is a living document which the current presidency may or may not chose to expand, but, as part of the communications strategy, it is a guide to help EU Ministers and officials express themselves clearly and to minimise the chance of their statements and policies being misunderstood or misconstrued.

Victims of Crime

Vincent Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department what measures are in place to prevent a person who has murdered their spouse organising the victim's funeral in their position as next-of-kin.

Harriet Harman: I have been asked to reply.
	There are no specific measures in place to prevent a person who has murdered their spouse organising the victim's funeral.
	Being next-of-kin does not create a right to organise someone's funeral. A duty to dispose of a dead body is incumbent on the executors of the deceased. A court can refuse to issue a grant of representation to someone it considers unsuitable to be an executor or an administrator of the deceased's estate. It is an offence to detain a body and to refuse to deliver it to the executors for burial.
	Under the victim advocate scheme which is being piloted in five Crown courts, families of the victims of murder or manslaughter will be able to receive up to15 hours of publicly funded personal and social legal advice from a lawyer, who will be able to advise on issues such as this, in addition to questions about access to the deceased's property and their children's belongings, residency orders, next of kin status as well as financial and benefits matters.

Violent Crime

Peter Bone: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many violent crimes were recorded in each year since 1996  (a) in total,  (b) in Northamptonshire and  (c) in Wellingborough.

Gerry Sutcliffe: holding answer 3 July 2006
	The information requested is given in the tables. Since 1997, there have been two major changes to the way in which crime is recorded. The effect of the change in counting rules in 1998 was to artificially increase recorded violent crime nationally by more than 80 per cent. while it is estimated that the effect of the introduction of the National Crime Recording Standard (NCRS) in April 2002 caused a further 20 per cent. increase in recorded violent crime in its first year.
	
		
			  Table 1: Recorded violent crime1996 and 1997 
			   Number of offences 
			   1996  1997 
			 England and Wales 344,766 347,064 
			 Northamptonshire 3,584 3,688 
			 Wellingborough n/a n/a 
			 n/a = not available. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 2: Recorded violent crime1998-99 to 2001-02 
			   Number of offences 
			   1998-99  1999-2000  2000-01  2001-02 
			 England and Wales 605,797 703,107 733,374 813,121 
			 Northamptonshire 5,995 5,896 6,051 6,973 
			 Wellingborough n/a 960 878 913 
			 n/a = not available.   Notes:  1. The coverage was extended and counting rules revised from 1998-99. Figures from that date are not directly comparable with those for 1997.  2. The data in this table is prior to the introduction of the National Crime Recording Standard. These figures are not directly comparable with those for later years. 
		
	
	
		
			  Table 3: Recorded violent crime2002-03 to 2004-05 
			   Number of offences 
			   2002-03  2003-04  2004-05 
			 England and Wales 991,563 1,109,016 1,184,702 
			 Northamptonshire 11,431 12,834 12,678 
			 Wellingborough 1,544 1,462 1,491 
			  Note:  The data in this table takes account of the introduction of the National Crime Recording Standard in April 2002. These figures are not directly comparable with those for earlier years.